


Journey to Enter the Fog

by NamelessNPC4



Category: Dead by Daylight (Video Game)
Genre: Brief depictions of killing, F/F, F/M, Multi, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Possible smut, Rape/Non-con Elements, Slow Burn, Suicidal Thoughts, Swearing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-06
Updated: 2019-09-28
Packaged: 2020-04-11 18:47:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 61,877
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19115560
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NamelessNPC4/pseuds/NamelessNPC4
Summary: Was it fate that they met or just a coincidence? Regardless, being saved by a group of killers was not on her to-do list. Maybe traveling with a group of teenage killers wouldn't be that bad... oh who was she fooling? She was screwed.





	1. Doomed From the Start

Slow, steady, rattling. The darkness emitted this constant noise, the only change being an occasional gust of wind that fluttered against the long, cold walls of the metal box. The darkness within the box unchanging as the minutes ticked away into hours.   
Suddenly, a quick jerk to the left and the rattling became banging and crashing, falling to the barren floor of the cold metal box. The rhythm of the noise interrupted once again as another sudden turn, no more than a minute later, into a lurch-lifting the objects in the air, defying gravity briefly until-  
“Oof!”   
The silence left as a panicked coughing took over the atmosphere. A few moments and their breathing calmed, turning into quick breathes as the figure’s consciousness returned.   
“Where am I?” They wondered out loud, their voice barely above a whisper before coughing again, dryness taking over their parched throat.   
Spinning was the first thing they noticed. As the cold floor reverberated underneath them, they felt the quick juttering of the floor smack their head repeatedly. Groggily, they lifted their head no more than an inch before feeling a stiffness in their neck and a pain in the side of their face. Too weak to keep their head up much longer, they rested it back down and tried to peer through the dark, investigating this unfamiliar place.  
After taking a few more breathes and waking fully, they tried moving their arms to help themselves up. A tight hold held them in place. They tried to move them again and felt something tighten around their arms and body.   
‘Rope?!’ They panicked, eyes shooting wide open with a sobering feeling that they were tied up.   
Eyes darted around the darkness, trying to see better, but only hearing the rattling of various objects in the darkness. Heart racing, they used their arm to lean up and look around. Unable to stand, they settled for leaning on their elbow, digging in to the hard, metal of the floor as they searched for answers.   
“Hello?! Anyone there?” A worried voice whispered in the dark.   
Silence greeted them followed by a groan and hard hit to the ground when they lost their foundation. The dark place lurched again, causing them to lift in the air a quick second and back on the rough ground.   
‘Well, I’m in something that’s moving.’ They thought, staring at, what they assumed to be the ceiling. ‘I’m going to assume a truck with all the objects and empty space.’  
They closed their eyes tightly, hoping to remember how they got there. Their racing heart kept them awake as they recollected their day.   
‘I was waiting for my mother to get off work… I had to pick her up.’ Yes. That much they could remember as they thought back. The heat of the dark space becoming overwhelming, contributing to their sweats as they silently panicked.   
‘That’s right… I went to get ice cream while I was waiting for her to text me. Some guy approached me and started talking to me then…’ They trailed off, opening their eyes in realization. ‘Someone came up behind me when I tried to leave and I don’t remember anything else after that...’  
They stared at the darkness, feeling even more queasy when they realized their situation. ‘I’ve been kidnapped!’ They struggled against the ropes, trying to break free and reach their pockets for a cell phone.   
Their struggles were futile, but true panic began to set in, being alone in the darkness and tied up didn’t help as they whined and tried to undo their knots. Their heart racing was deafening to them, blocking out all other sounds as they thrashed in place. Without comprehending a change in movement, the rattling started slowing until it stopped. Unaware, they didn’t hear footsteps walking outside of the box and towards the back.   
A loud metallic thud tore them away from their fighting, their breath caught in their throat as doors began to open and an orange light peeked through the room. The thin line of light only lighting up their body and immediate surroundings. They froze as their eyes darted around, they were so accustomed to the dark that the light temporarily blinded them.   
Someone had just opened the back, and the only reason they knew that was from the gruffy, annoyed voice as it grunted behind them. The low voice of a man could be heard as he climbed into the box.   
“So you finally woke up. I know this is quite a change, but you gotta shut yer trap. I don’t want to hear your whining the whole drive.” The man complained to the person.  
They shivered as their eyes finally adjusted to the light. They peered down towards their legs towards the man. They gasped when they recognized the man from before. Biting their lip in fear, they looked around for something, anything to help them out of this situation. They noticed that they were indeed in a small moving truck and that a warm breeze of air snuck in through the parted window that connected to the driver’s area.   
‘So he must have heard me and pulled over.’ They figured out, not noticing the stares of the male.   
He chuckled as he watched them look around frantically, piecing things together.   
“Well, I suppose that now yer awake I could calm ya down…” He mumbled and took a few heavy steps towards the helpless person.   
After hearing this, they immediately shot a fearful look to the man that stood above them. They locked eyes, his smiling deviously watching them like prey. They grunted and knelt down beside them, reaching out and rubbing their cheek.   
“No!” They screamed, struggling more and trying to squirm away frantically.   
“Hey Harold, we ain’t allowed to bring them damaged goods.” Another male voice called from the back of the truck.   
Harold, scoffed and looked back at the other man. “I ain’t damaging the goods, just breaking them in ahead of time. Besides they don’t pay us enough for this job, it doesn’t hurt to have a little extra fun on these trips.” He turned back and grinned down at them.  
They stared back in horror, fully aware that they were only seen as an object, no longer a human to these human traffickers. The other man simply grunted, telling the man to hurry up so they weren’t late to arrive. Harold chuckled and reached towards the person, they gasped and shook their head, shaking and shimmying the best they could to try to keep the man away.   
Harold tsked in annoyance, sitting on top of them and forcibly turning them on to their stomach after a few moments of struggling.   
“No!” they screamed the loudest they could before coughing from dehydration. “Don’t touch me you fucker!”   
“Ooh what a filthy mouth. I ought to punish you for saying that.” Harold whispered in their ear as he had them pinned below him.  
They shuddered, feeling his breath tickle their ear and neck. They grunted as he cackled a bit, his breath smelled of cheap chips and soda, was their alcohol too?   
“No no no… please no..” They repeated as he held them down.   
Hearing the clattering of a belt being undone, their eyes shot open and they found another wave of energy as they used all they could in lurching back and headbutting him in the face with the back of their head. The panicked attack worked and busted his nose, causing him to curse and fall back. The other man laughed and mocked Harold as he cursed and shot out some bloody snot.   
“Oh that’s it. I AM NOT GOING EASY ON THIS MERCHANDISE.” He hissed and kicked them in the back, stomping on them a couple times, enough to make them scream and cough violently. “That’s what you get you fucker. You better behave better when they buy you or you’ll get worse.”   
His threats shook them to the bone. ‘No… this can’t be happening..’ They thought, crying as they heard Harold drop his pants and get back on top of them.   
They cried as he grabbed the back of their head roughly by the hair, pulling them back to him so he could smell them. They felt his hardened erection press against their ass as he grinded into them roughly.   
“Stop it! Let me go!” they kept begging the man as he began to undo their buttons and pull off their shorts.  
They tightened their legs together, keeping him from pulling it down too far. He growled and smacked them on the face so hard it reverberated in the truck.   
“You’re gonna behave whether you like it or-“  
Suddenly, Harold was cut off with a cry of pain and was pulled off the shaking person on the ground. They opened their eyes and could only see the shadows from the setting sun cast the scene before them. Harold’s fat body was being pulled back by two people, shorter and smaller than him. He yelled in fear and anger as he tried to shake the other figures off him.   
“Let go of me you fucking kids!” He swore, trying to break free and hitting one of them in the face. A small round shape flew and hit the floor with a clank, skittering over to the person. They looked down and saw a white mask with a smiling, psychotic face etched into it. They squinted to look at it better, seeing another color…   
Suddenly, their eyes shot open when Harold was grabbed again and two new figures helped hold him in place. His voice screeched as he was locked in place. A fourth shadow stood up from the hit before and approached the struggling man being held in place. A deep male voice chuckled and muttered something incomprehensible before reaching in their pocket and pulling out a triangular object. Harold’s screeching took over all noise as the fourth shadow ran and jumped at the man, plunging the object into Harold, not once, twice, thrice, it had to be at least 10 times.   
The person watched the shadows in horror as Harold was stabbed by not one, but all four of the people. They all joined in the man’s murder. The slicing open of skin, the dripping of blood and their grunts was all that filled the atmosphere of the truck for a solid minute. The person shivered on the floor, feeling something wet touch their exposed legs and slide up their body silently. They realized that other color on the mask without needing proper light had to be red.   
Then quiet and panting.   
Four shadows stood in the small line of light in the dark. They listened, holding their breath as they watched the figures catch their breath. One slowly turned their head towards the person, followed by the other three. All looking in their direction now, they watched as one shadow stood up and walked towards them. The other three stood up but didn’t move, only watching the one walk over and stop above the person on the floor.   
Their breathing got caught in their throat when an arm reached over and picked up the bloodied mask, retreating to their body. They stared ahead, not wanting to look at the killer standing above them or the murder scene. They knew Harold was dead by all the blood that slivered down their body, staining their clothes as it moved towards their torso.   
“Looks like you’re the last one.” A male’s voice broke the silence. He couldn’t be much older than her she thought, still not finding the courage to look at the man standing above her.   
She stared at the metallic wall as the last bit of energy resurfaced within her as she spoke in a hoarse voice. “Not for much longer.” Her voice wavered, but she kept her composure in front of the killer.   
She watched as the shadow of the man tilted their head curiously, looking down at her. “What’s that supposed to mean?”   
She felt a shaky breath leave her as she felt the last bit of courage escape through her words. “If you’re going to brutally murder me next, make it quick.”   
‘There’s nothing to lose.’ She thought, closing her eyes a bit for refuge before turning back to look at him over her shoulder “Today, it seems, I’ve been doomed from the start. If I have to die, I would rather it be from 40 stab wounds than rape.”   
She looked at the man in the white, smiling mask, trying to peer into his real eyes as they stared at her. They locked eyes before she moved her gaze to the other three who watched silently then laid her head back down. She was laying on her side and pulled her legs into the fetal position, trying to gather a last bit of comfort before dying. Her shorts were open and pulled down halfway off her hips yet. The shifting around not helping their movement.   
She closed her eyes as she felt tears prickle at them, accepting her fate but still worried to die. What was death like? What would happen to her? What about her family and friends? Did they know she was missing? ‘At least they won’t find my dead body after being raped and beaten by a slave owner.’ She thought before taking one last breath as the shadow moved over her.   
“Thank you for saving me…” she whispered to the group of killers, biting her lip and closing her eyes tightly. She waited quietly for death.  
Hearing a quiet movement, the man leaned over and grabbed her by the arm. Her long hair getting caught in his firm grasp and being tugged. She bit her lip tighter, blood trickling down now as the anticipation would end her life before any stab wound.   
Riiiippp…  
A sudden wave of relief washed over her physical body as the ropes binding her in place were cut and fell to the ground. Her teeth released her lower lip and she slowly moved her wrists. The man still held her down in place sternly.   
“You lucked out today.” The man stated, causing her eyes to shoot open surprised.   
She looked over her shoulder at him. She noticed his knife was still in his hand as it rested on her arm. She furrowed her eyes in confusion as they locked eyes again. It was harder to see as the sun was practically set at this point and the moonlight was taking over.   
“Why?” She whimpered out, shocking herself and the others.   
“I don’t like cheap kills. You should be happy we decided to spare your pathetic life.” He snarled back, upset at her ungrateful response.   
She swallowed the best she could past her parched throat and looked over at the other three, still not convinced. Slowly, she tried to move her arms to help herself up, but was stopped by the man’s grip on her arm. He pulled out his knife and pointed it directly at her. He moved the blade in close so it was inches from her face as she stared back at him. The blood from Harold’s body dripped from the end and fell on her collarbone, sliding down her pale skin to her chest and staining the fabric of her off-white tank top. She shook from the cool fluid but didn’t break her stare from the murderer, out of fear that one movement could result in her getting stabbed.   
After a moment that felt like an eternity, the man chuckled amused and released her arm, letting her move it to the side to help her up.   
“Hmph… Amazing how you go from accepting death one second to fearing it another. So fucking bipolar.”   
“You’re not much different- saying you’ll let me go one second then pointing a knife at me the next.” She huffed back, getting annoyed with his snarky attitude.   
If she could see through his mask, she would have guessed that his eyebrow raised in amusement. “When did I say I would let you go?”  
She cocked her brow in confusion and sat up, turning towards the man who still pointed his knife at her. “What-but you said-“  
She gasped and got cut off by him stepping in closer, kneeling down before her and pointing the blade to her throat. She grit her teeth and looked down at the blade in fear as it poked her skin.   
“I said I would spare your life.” He pointed out, tilting his head to the side and watching her face twist into an upset frown.   
She looked over at the group who still watched in silence, before shooting her eyes back to the man when he poked her again with his knife.   
“Pay attention to me.” He demanded, his voice getting dark.   
“Alright, what do you want from me?” She asked hoarsely, afraid to hear the answer as the man stayed in a crouching position and moved a bit closer.   
She heard a hum reverberate in his throat as he thought. He tapped a finger to his chin playfully, as if pretending to think. Frowning in annoyance, she waited for him to respond before one of his colleagues spoke up.  
“Frank… we should get going soon. A truck on the side of the road with its door open and two bodies in the back is going to attract some attention.” A female voice spoke up, crossing their arms annoyed, they had a mask similar to Frank’s.  
Frank grumbled to himself, not wanting to agree with her and still holding the knife towards the woman.   
“Hmph! Fine. WE’RE going.” He stated and looked at the outsider. “All of us.”   
She looked at the man shocked, her blue eyes widening in shock at his demands. “Wait what?! Why me?”   
Frank’s other teammates seemed just as surprised as her at his words.   
“Frank-!” They were cut off by his yells.   
“Shut it and get the truck ready!” Frank growled, looking at the group of three.   
The one in the skull mask stared for a split second then nodded and hopped out of the truck, headlights shone through the dark soon after with the rattling of an engine. Frank then moved his attention to the girl who frowned at him.   
“And you girl… no more questions. You owe us.” He muttered before moving his knife from her throat and using it to motion towards her lower torso. “You may want to fix that first.”  
She cocked a brow confused before looking down and remembering her shorts were pulled down, blue polka-dot panties revealed. She blushed madly and shakily tried her best to fix her shorts, stumbling with the button.  
Frank chuckled, watching her entertained. “Not that I mind of course. You don’t HAVE TO fix them.”  
The girl that spoke before growled behind her mask and glared at the new girl after hearing this.   
She cursed at him under her breath as she finished fixing them and kept her gaze away, embarrassed that these killers saw her more private area. Frank reached out and grabbed her chin, forcing her to look at him. She pouted and he stared at her quietly then motioned with his knife to stand. She frowned at this but knew she was outnumbered and too weak from exhaustion to fight back. She tried to stand but her legs wobbled from not being used and laying on the hard floor for hours. Grunting, her hands caught her fall, and she tried to push herself up the best she could. Slowly but surely, she could stand on her own!  
Frank watched impatiently and leaned over, forcibly grabbing her arm and pulling her to her feet. She whined in pain and annoyance, gritting her teeth as she was forced to lean against Frank for support. To her surprise, he was a few inches taller than her, the top of her head barely reaching the end of his mask.  
“I could have stood on my own.” She muttered, glaring at the man.  
“Yeah when I’m 10 feet under. Let’s go!” He grumbled impatiently and pulled her along.   
Weakly, she obliged but tried not to lean against the man too much. She winced in pain as he forced her along, past his two teammates and towards the truck.   
“Jeez… and here I thought you were a hero but you’re more of a villain…” She muttered under her breath.   
Frank heard this and chuckled, squeezing a little tighter to acknowledge her comment. She flinched, realizing he had heard that.   
“There’s a lot you don’t know about me, but don’t worry… We have all the time in the world to get to know each other.” He replied before pushing her forward when they reached the edge of the truck. “Let’s go!”  
She gasped and cried out as her fawn-like legs couldn’t catch her. The air rushed through her long hair and blew past her face as she fell. Squealing, she held her hands out to catch herself from the fall and scraped her palms on the gravel road when they connected.   
She hissed in pain and helped herself to her knees which were scraped as well considering she was wearing shorts. Quickly, she held out her hands and looked at the small droplets seeping from her sweaty skin. A crunch was heard behind her as Frank and his colleagues hopped down from the back of the truck. The brunette growled and looked behind her, sensing a presence over her form. The smiling mask chuckled and nodded to the truck.   
“How was the fall from your high tower, Princess?” Frank sneered down at her form. “I thought you said you could stand yourself?”   
Her cheeks flushed red at his mocking nature and her stubbornness got the better of her. “Don’t call me that! I don’t need your help!” She spat and forced herself up shakily, even though her hands hurt to touch the rocky gravel.  
Frank snickered and crossed his arms, watching her struggle to stand. He tapped his knife against his arm as he waited, purposely showing his impatience. The girl frowned in annoyance at his behavior but ignored it as she was finally able to stand. She huffed, proud of her accomplishment before taking half a step forward and falling again.   
Frank and his crew laughed at her weakness as she bit her lip and grumbled in annoyance.   
“Oh wow. I have to say, I’m impressed! Ain’t no one stopping Princess over here.” He slowed and enunciated princess to annoy her more.   
“Fuck off!” She growled to herself then felt people on both sides, forcing her up. One had a mask with stitches on it while the other had a skull.   
“As much as we’d love to cheer you on your adventure, we gotta disappear fast.” Frank shrugged and walked ahead, taking the wheel. “Bring her in the front.”  
The person with a mask similar to Frank gasped and stepped forward. “But Frank-“  
“No more buts tonight. Let’s get the fuck outta dodge.” He closed the door loudly and waited.   
She quieted down and clenched her fists in annoyance but obliged. She strode over after the group who walked the girl to the passenger side of the old truck. The one with pink hair opened the door before getting shoved to the side by the other female.   
“I’m taking front.” She growled pushing the new girl aside and hoisting herself up.   
“Princess gets middle.” Frank stated, looking over at them. “Don’t want her jumping out.”  
The female hissed under her breath and looked back at the new girl who frowned. She reluctantly stepped back before pushing her into the truck roughly. The girl grumbled and steadied herself on the truck seat. She glared at the group and was helped up roughly by the arm as Frank tugged her in. She grunted and sat beside Frank on the leather bench seat of the truck. The other female getting in quickly after her and slamming the door. The last remaining people hopped in the open trunk in the back of the truck. They shook the whole vehicle a bit before settling in a corner and nodding to Frank.   
Frank gave them a quick gesture then shifted to reverse to get around the fresh murder scene. The old truck rattled as it sped up, traversing the gravel road, leaving the bloody bodies out in the truck and reflecting in the moonlight. The only remaining sound was the quiet chirp of crickets and a slow dripping.


	2. Looks Can Be Deceiving

Awkward.   
No. Not even that word could describe the uneasy, uncomfortable atmosphere that surrounded the truck. Since leaving the murder scene, the group was relatively silent. The driver, whom she learned was called “Frank” was quietly driving, mask still on. He rested his arm comfortably outside the open window next to him and tapped the side of the door every so often.   
The woman on the right of her had her arms crossed tightly over her chest and stared out the window. She also had her smiling mask on and would sneak glances to her left. The outsider couldn’t tell who she was trying to look at but definitely felt hatred radiate towards her.   
The outsider would occasionally look in the rearview mirror at the two in the back of the truck. The one in the stitched mask appeared to be a girl, judging by the long pink hair, tights and skirt. “Stitches” hugged her legs close to her body and rested her head on her knees, playing with her knife bored. The other person in the back with the skull mask had left from her sight. She assumed “Skull” had laid down to rest in the back while their leader drove them to wherever they planned to go.   
The brunette spaced out, feeling light-headed from lack of food, water, and proper sleep but still felt adrenaline pumping through her veins to keep her awake. She didn’t know what to think of this situation. Why did they want her to go with them? Why not just kill her? She juggled these thoughts in her head while Frank shot her a quick glance. Still wearing his mask, he had to turn a bit to look at her.   
His eyes watched her space out and her expressions change with her thoughts. He looked her figure up and down. While it was dark out, he could tell she was fair-skinned and had long brown hair that was straight then curled oddly at the ends. She was wearing shorts and a tank top so he could easily see her figure. She wasn’t thin but she sure wasn’t fat either. She had curves where she needed it and was normal sized everywhere else. A good in-between, what was that term he had heard recently? Thick? Her eyes were small, but her eyelashes long and her eyebrows dark. He couldn’t tell in this light if she was wearing makeup, but it looked very minimal, very natural. The princess nickname was intended to irritate her, but he couldn’t deny that she was easy on the eyes.   
Tearing from those thoughts, he focused his attention outside the window for a bit. He could sense how anxious she was feeling, his past experiences kicking in. Being a killer when you’re very empathetic was always troubling for him. He had been around so many people and had experienced so much that people were easy for him to read. He grumbled to himself and shifted around to ease the atmosphere, he spoke up afterwards.   
“So Princess, how’d you end up in that shit-fest?”   
Everyone seemed to perk up when Frank spoke, paying attention to him and waiting to see what the girl had to say. She frowned at him and looked down, upset.   
“Why’d you kill those guys?” She rebutted.   
Frank glanced over at her, he was upset until he saw her pout and try to avoid the question. Chuckling, he shrugged. “Well, if you answer my question then I’ll answer yours. Question for a question. Answer for an answer.”  
She raised a brow and looked back at him, a little curious to actually get some answers from him. She sighed and looked away again, her voice quieting down as she spoke. “Well… I was supposed to pick up my mother from work. It was a hot day, so I went to get ice cream and I got approached by one of those assholes.”   
Frank chuckled at her scenario. “Really? Ice cream got you in this scenario? How sad.” He told her off and she growled but continued.  
“WELL, the ice cream didn’t lure me into that scenario. The younger one you shanked asked if he could sit down besides me. Being the overly nice girl I am, I let him. People are always approaching me for directions and are just overly nice to me. One guy started talking to me about his diabetes medication, I swear. Well regardless, I thought it was one of those situations but he started sweet talking and hitting on me.” She murmured and looked at her feet upset with herself for falling for it. “I should have known it was bullshit…”  
Frank got quiet as he listened, his heckling before made him feel bad. It was a classic scenario of a trafficker luring a girl in.   
“Well, I tried to leave and the fat one jumped me in the lot and knocked me out with chloroform I, assume. That’s how I got here.” She finished and looked over at Frank sternly. “Now answer my question.”  
Frank simply shrugged, not looking at her. “That truck cut me off on the highway. So I decided to make it my next target.”  
She stared at him, dumbfounded at his answer. “You’re kidding me.”  
Frank glared over at her seriously, feeling a little self-conscious at her obvious judging look. “I’m not kidding you.”  
She stared at Frank, shocked at his response. Frank noticed she was staring and chuckled.   
“What? Hoping if you stare at my mask long enough that you can see through it?”   
She blinked at him stunned before looking away and blushing embarrassed. “N-no! Well… you stopped them from raping me, so I guess it doesn’t matter why…” She changed the subject and looked away. “What do you want from me anyway?”  
Frank watched her cross her arms in anticipation. He remained silent and stared at the bumpy road as he thought. ‘Why am I dragging her along with us? Why spare her?’  
When she didn’t receive a response, she looked at him more obviously and noticed he was spaced out. She carefully reached out a hand and waved it in front of his face. Frank jumped a bit at this, causing her to jump as well.   
“Jumpy Princess?”   
“Well yeah, why wouldn’t I be?” She muttered averting her eyes. “I watched you and your group just murder those guys. For all I know, one wrong move and I could end up the same.”  
Frank’s shoulders hummed with his laughter when he heard this. “Oh yeah? Then I would cut the sass from your silver tongue.” He warned darkly.   
She shuddered at this, his tone reminding her of how he spoke during the murder. Right away, Frank noticed a change in her aura and he burst out laughing, hitting the side of the car door.   
“Oh you’re a riot Princess! Nah, actually, I’d rather you be entertaining than a boring deadweight. THEN I’d have to kill ya off. Nothing worse than being useless.” He sighed and looked out the open window.   
“Urk…” She grit her teeth a bit, worried and unsure of what to say. ‘So he’ll kill me if he gets bored of me? Great…’ “I’m really not the spontaneous type…”   
“Oh? Why not?” He looked back at her, intrigued.   
She shrugged and sighed. “It’s not really in my personality. I overthink things and try to plan many aspects of my life, weighing the pros and cons.”  
Frank rolled his eyes at this, “God you’re one of those people?” He grimaced as if the words were sour.  
“Hey! What’s that supposed to mean?” She turned towards him in anger. “There’s nothing wrong with being rational and logical about things!”  
“That’s just it-you’re still young so you should just do what you want and figure shit out later when you become a boring adult.” Frank rested his head in his palm bored.   
The girl pouted at this and thought about his words. “Well, planning and being level-headed has helped me become a mature adult-“  
“PFT! What are you? 18?”  
“I’m 23.” She corrected him, noticing a look of shock. “I know I look younger than my actual age, but it’s true. I was working on getting a great job at a university, finding an apartment and moving in with my boyfriend, figuring out my life.”  
Frank’s pout was hidden by his hand that he rested against. “Just don’t turn us into old hags.” He muttered.  
“Old hag?! If you weren’t driving and a murderer, I’d smack you upside the head right now!”  
He chuckled and nudged her side a bit, “Such wise words from an old hag.”  
Frank smirked under his mask as he watched her get upset. She grabbed her hair out of annoyance while she muttered the pros and cons of kicking his ass right then and there. God he loved upsetting her, watching her reactions to his teasing, and he just met the girl no more than a few hours ago. He could tell she was a good girl, but still had some spunk to her. He was a bad boy, never following the rules or listening to authority. Complete opposites, yet something attracted him to her. Here she was, at the mercy of his group after being trafficked around in a shitty truck for hours and she still had the energy to sass him back. What did he want with her? That sure was the million-dollar question. He felt an odd attraction to the female, for whatever reason, he had no idea. For now, he wanted to get to know her and figure out the rest later. He was curious, however, if the feeling was mutual.   
He took in a deep breath and still felt his nerves on high. Oh yeah, he was so caught up with the new arrival that he forgot to have his celebratory smoke. He leaned out the window and shouted so everyone could hear him.   
“We’re gonna pull over for a break.” He declared and pulled off to the side of the road.   
The group, used to his behavior and decisions, got out right away as he got into park. The new girl looked around confused and stayed in the car as everyone seemed to get out. Frank looked at her as he was about to close his door.   
“What? You wanna stay in there? We still have a ways to go.”  
She frowned and looked back at the group who gathered around towards the ditch. They were on a highway at this point, going to god knows where.   
‘I guess I am safer with a group of killers. What else is there to fear with them around?’ She scooted over to the passenger side and helped herself out.   
Frank closed his door and headed over to her side. The one girl in the group watched carefully as he walked over to her and followed her to the ditch. She grumbled to herself and pulled out a cigarette, taking in a long draw as she kept her mask on but to the side. She muttered a few curses and angry remarks about their discussion in the car, but knew not to bring it up in front of Frank. The other two seemed to do the same and listened to her quietly as the two walked over to join them. The outsider’s legs were shaky, but had improved enough to make it over without giving out.   
Frank walked on ahead as she slowed, smelling the cigarette smoke and scrunching her nose. She stopped in place and Frank looked back curiously. He saw she was staring at the group and reached in his pocket, pulling out a lighter and pack of cigarettes.   
“You want a light?” He offered her the pack, a cigarette hanging loosely from his mouth.   
She frowned and shook her head, covering her face. “No way, I don’t smoke.”  
Frank cocked a brow and rolled his eyes at her. “Of course the Princess doesn’t smoke. She’s too much of a good girl.” He put his pack away and searched for a lighter.  
She frowned at him angrily and started to get animated with her hands. “Yeah I don’t smoke! You know that tobacco is awful for your health. Sorry for not wanting to speed up my death.”  
Frank chuckled and shrugged at her, finally finding his lighter, he brought it up to his cigarette and glanced at her. “To each their own. Nothing feels better than a cigarette after a good kill. Or even better yet, a good fuck.”  
She blushed at this, thankful that it was dark enough out to cover her red cheeks. The flicker of small flames from his lighter caught her attention. She noticed the small flame light up his mask. Instead, she realized that he had moved his mask so it sat slanted, covering only half his face. As Frank struggled to light the cigarette with the wind, she studied his face. She could see one of his dark eyes, most of his nose, which had a scar horizontally across it, and most of his mouth, his lips chapped. With the mask tilted oddly, it messed up some of his short hair so that it peeked out from his hood. Her attention moved down to his neck when she noticed color. It had a tattoo of a skull on fire. Interesting choice.   
She pouted a little as she analyzed his face. He didn’t seem to look like a killer even with the bold skull tattoo on his neck. Hell, he still had to be a kid, probably around high school age. But she knew looks could be deceiving from her previous studies in college. Still, this made her more curious of how these kids formed this murderous group. What did their parents think of this?   
Her eyes saddened at this and she frowned. ‘I wonder what my parents and friends are thinking now? When will I see them again?’  
Frank took another huff of his cigarette and noticed she was staring at his face. He smirked, happy to catch her staring at his face now that his mask had been removed a little. “You like what you see, Princess?”  
She jumped from her thoughts when she heard his voice. Her eyes widened and averted her gaze. “N-no! I was just spacing out… How old are you anyway?” She asked and immediately regretted it. She cursed to herself as Frank raised a brow and gave her a cocky smirk. “Not like that! I was asking because you guys don’t look much older than highschoolers and you’re out here alone. What do your parents think? They have to be worried.”  
Frank immediately frowned at this, scowling at the comment. The others also quieted down and frowned. She noticed the change in the atmosphere and shivered. Frank walked over towards her, he crouched over and glared down at her, getting eye-level.   
“We don’t fucking care that they think. Not everyone is goodie two-shoes like you, Princess.”   
She frowned and took a step back as he glowered and kept approaching her, obviously hitting a nerve with him. “Okay…”  
“You’ve probably had everything served to you on a golden platter. News flash Princess! Not everyone is as fortunate as you!”  
She shuddered and nodded, stepping back again. “Okay, I’m so-“  
He ignored her and kept advancing, “Be fucking happy we haven’t murdered you yet. Ever since we saved you, you been nothing but a cocky bitch. We could leave you here on the side of the road and you’d be dead by morning! Then what would your precious family think?!” He was yelling at this point.  
The darkness made it hard to see but the vibes had completely changed, she could tell she went too far and regretted it. Yes, she had been raised in a good family and had a good life going for her. Her parents were together, she lived in a house, had a boyfriend and loyal friends. She hated how mean he was being to her but knew she was at fault. Pouting, she frowned and looked away.   
“Okay I’m sorry!” She shouted over him. “Here I was thinking that someone had to be worried you all were gone, but I guess I was wrong to assume that.”   
Frank heard her sniffle and saw her dark figure raise a hand to her face. Was she crying? He frowned, realizing his brash nature got the best of him again. She turned away and headed towards the truck, not wanting them to know she was crying.   
“I’ll be in the truck.” She said simply as she got in the truck and closed the door after her.   
Frank just stood there and stared. Skull walked over and put a hand on his shoulder.   
“Don’t take her too seriously, Frank. She doesn’t understand us at all.”  
“Yeah! She’s just a prissy little bitch.” The female hissed coming to their side with Stitches following behind her.   
Frank just frowned and shook them off. He took one last swig of his cigarette before dropping it on the road and crushing the end with his foot. “Let’s just go. We’ve got a long fucking drive ahead of us.”  
He walked off and fixed his mask while the group looked at each other confused.   
“Do you want me to drive, Frank?” Skull asked and was answered with Frank slamming the driver’s side shut. “Okay then… Well Susie, I guess we should get in the back or Frank will take off without us.”  
“Yeah let’s go Julie.” Susie, the pinkette tugged her friend’s arm after she and Skull fixed their masks.  
Julie was glaring at the new girl who slumped over in the middle seat of the truck. She fixed her mask and remained silent as she stomped towards her seat. Susie looked over to Skull and tilted her head confused. “What do you think is up with her?”  
“She definitely doesn’t like the new girl.”  
“Yeah you’re probably right Joey…”  
“Hey,” He tapped on her arm. “Let’s go.”   
She nodded and looked at the new girl as well, staring as she got in. ‘She doesn’t seem too bad…’  
After they hopped in the back and sat down, Frank drove off quickly. The car ride was silent, most of the kids falling asleep. The new girl held her legs to her body and kept her eyes low, her aura now emitting sadness and regret. Frank noticed she still hadn’t fallen asleep yet and sighed.   
“You should be sleeping, you’ve had a shitty day.”  
She didn’t look over at him, and simply shrugged quietly. He noticed this and groaned to himself. He hated being ignored and reached over, grabbing her chin to force her to look towards him. She frowned but complied without struggle.   
“Hey, you still upset about before? You shouldn’t be. Get over that shit.” He murmured quietly.   
She frowned at his brusque words and averted her eyes. He noticed she was still silent and her eyes were off him, and squeezed her face. She whined and looked back.   
“I don’t like the silent treatment.” He warned, before sighing and shaking his head. “I’m just saying, put that shit behind you. It’s in the past, ‘kay?”  
She realized this was his backwards way of apologizing and sighed, nodding. He noticed she relaxed a bit and chuckled.   
“Good. Your bitch face is less appealing to look at.”   
Her cheeks flared up in anger and embarrassment and swatted away his hand. He snickered when her spunk came back as she cursed him out under her breath. She started to yawn and nod off a few minutes later. She leaned back against the old leather and fell asleep soon after.   
“Stay feisty, Princess.” Frank murmured as he drove off on the lonely, dark highway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two chapters in one day? I must be butter, cuz I'm on a roll... Nevermind…   
> Thanks for reading!


	3. Meeting the Fam

It truly is amazing how refreshing sleeping in a rickety old truck, with a bunch of killers can be after almost getting sold off into slavery the previous day. Even after witnessing someone get murdered, she had pleasant dreams. She dreamt of her future, getting back to see her family and friends after sorting this mess out. Even though Frank constantly threatened her with death, she didn’t think he would actually kill her. Hell, he had many chances, why not have done it while she slept right?   
She stirred a bit when the truck took a quick turn to the right, assumedly taking an exit. The outsider mumbled to herself, choking a bit as she tried to swallow. ‘Oh yeah. I haven’t had food or drink since yesterday.’ She was also reminded by her pounding headache and pained stomach.   
Slowly, she opened her eyes and saw the dawn shine back with welcome. She grimaced, unable to fully take in her surroundings and averted her eyes. Blinking confused, she noticed a jacketed arm was right before her. Terror set in when she realized that she had fallen asleep against the girl besides her. She shrieked inwardly, and quickly pulled herself back, fearing the repercussions. The brunette quietly watched as the other girl remained silent in place.   
‘She doesn’t look like she’s awake… thank god! I can tell she’s not a fan of me and that may have been her opportune moment to stab me.’ The girl rubbed her stiff neck and tried cracking it.  
Frank, meanwhile, had seen the whole thing and chuckled silently. ‘I’ll give you shit for this later.’ He thought then spoke up. “You hungry Princess?”  
She jumped a bit at his sudden question, before her stomach answered for her.   
“I’ll take that as a yes. Don’t worry, we making a pit stop soon.”  
She only nodded and kept her body close to herself, ‘Did he see me lay on her? Knowing my luck, probably! God I’m doomed…’ she rested her head on her knees when her body begged for sustenance.   
Frank looked around at the farmlands he drove past. ‘This place seems pretty secluded. Should be a gas station around here we can hit up.’   
He noticed a sign directing him towards the small town up ahead and followed until he found a shifty-looking gas station. The vibes it gave made it seem like it had been abandoned years ago. The parking lot had many potholes that could take out a tire if one went over it too fast. The pumps and station were grimy from years without washing. The lights were blinking in and out from the faulty wiring. Still, electricity meant someone was around.   
‘Perfect stop for us.’ He thought and drove into the lot, next to a pump. Frank knocked on the glass behind him, waking up the two in the back. The group started yawning and stretching, noticing he stopped at the station. “Everyone get up. We got a stop.”  
The group nodded, knowing what he meant and hopped out of the truck. The brunette looked around worriedly, regretting her movements as she decided to get out. Frank started pumping gas and pulled the group together.   
“What do you guys think?”  
“Should be an easy haul.” Julie nodded, whispering to the group. “Only saw one worker so far. We should scope out the place first.”  
“Great.” Frank looked at the new girl and snapped his fingers to get her attention. “Hey, pay attention Princess. You and Suze are gonna stay at the pump while it finishes. The three of us are gonna do some recon.”  
He stared at the pink haired girl in the mask, watching her fidget nervously. “Don’t let her out of your sight.”   
Susie nodded quickly and watched as the group dispersed. The pinkette seemed to shuffle around anxiously, looking over at the outsider every now and then. She watched her curiously, noticing that Susie would avoid her gaze when they would make eye contact.   
“You okay?” She asked the person hiding behind their mask.   
They nodded their head again and began rubbing their arm anxiously. The brunette cocked a brow curiously, leaning her head over to get a better look at her face-er-mask.  
“Are you scared of me? I won’t hurt you. Heh… if anything I’m sure you could hurt me worse.” She tried to lighten the aura but seemed to make the pinkette more jittery. “I see you’re not very talkative… I won’t bother you further.”  
The outsider rubbed the back of her head uncomfortably and started to open the door to the truck. Her eyes widened when a small hand hidden by a shirt sleeve stopped her.   
“You have to stay by me.”  
“I know, I was just going to wait in the truck. I promise I won’t run off.” She stared back at the pinkette who seemed unconvinced.   
“Why should I believe you?”   
The brunette frowned, thinking about the question. She had nothing to give her, no real reason not to run off. “Well… I could… give you a pinky promise?”   
The pinkette flinched at this, not out of fear but surprise, maybe curiosity. The brunette watched her calm down a little and looked down at her hand. She smiled and raised her hand, outstretching her pinkie and holding it out for her. She waited a bit before noticing the girl raise her hand and slowly return her pinky promise.   
“There. A pinkie promise for a pink-haired girl.” The brunette smiled sweetly at the girl.   
“…Susie… My name is Susie.” Susie murmured, meeting eye contact with the new girl before looking away nervously again. She pulled back her hand and fidgeted with her digits.  
“Okay, Susie it is.” She nodded and pulled back her hand, resting it to her side. She wasn’t sure why, but she was growing fond of this “Susie” girl. She really did seem harmless, but she knew very well that she hid a knife under that baggy clothing.   
“What’s your name anyway? All I ever hear is “Princess”.”   
The brunette let out a deep sigh and rolled her eyes in annoyance. “That damn nickname can’t go away fast enough…”  
Susie shifted around in place, waiting expectantly for an answer. The brunette noticed this and chuckled awkwardly.   
“Oh sorry.” She rubbed the back of her head and nodded. “My real name is Marissa. Frank, well, no one, has really asked for my real name. I figured they wouldn’t care anyway…” She trailed off as Susie started putting the name to her memory.   
“Marissa… I like that name.”   
Marissa looked over at Susie and smiled at her warmly. Susie gasped at this and blushed furiously; relieved her mask was covering her face. She brought her hands to the place her mouth would be and covered it.  
‘Susie is adorable.’ Marissa thought, looking away to avoid making her uncomfortable. “I like your pink hair. It’s pretty.”  
Susie nodded shyly and kicked a small rock in the lot, holding her hands behind her back. “Me too… I like having long hair to decorate.”  
Marissa nodded in agreement. “Well, I don’t do much to my hair, but I love my long hair. Someday it’s gonna be the death of me, but until then I’m growing it out.” She glanced back at Susie and tilted her head to the side. “Have you thought about dyeing it other colors?”  
Susie just shrugged, waiting for Marissa to continue.   
“I’ve always wanted to dye my hair blue. It’s my favorite color.”  
Susie listened silently, watching Marissa sigh and frown. “I never did because I wanted to look professional for my job interviews…” She trailed off, thinking about what Frank said before.   
Susie watched her expression change, noticing her become sad. She was about to speak up when the click of the gas pump interrupted her. Marissa looked over and took out the pump, placing it back on the station.   
‘Why does Julie hate her so much? She doesn’t seem that bad…’   
Marissa looked around for the others and frowned. “What’s taking them so long? They should be back by now.”  
“They are probably just finishing up.”  
Marissa raised a brow and looked at Susie, waiting for an explanation.   
“Didn’t Frank tell you? They are robbing the place right now-“ Susie was cut off by loud screams from the station.   
Marissa jumped at the commotion and watched as the three sped towards them with full bags on their shoulders. They motioned for the two to get in the truck and get it going. Susie nodded and patted Marissa towards the door gently. A look of fear and concern was on the brunette’s face but decided it was best to just get in the truck before someone pulled a knife on her. Susie got in after her and closed the truck, quickly putting on her seatbelt and motioning for Marissa to do the same. She nodded as Susie reached over and started the ignition. Marissa cursed under her breath, struggling to get the old belt to click in place. Susie took an extra moment to glance over at her from her view. She figured getting an extra look wouldn’t hurt while the brunette was distracted. Susie jumped and retracted her hand when Julie got in the driver’s seat and started speeding off. The guys hopped in the back and held the bags from flying out the back as they sped away from the scene of the crime.   
“Did you guys rob that place?!” Marissa shouted at the back.   
“Fuck yeah! It was an easy hit! Couldn’t pass it up!” Frank cheered and high-fived his friend in the back.   
“Ugh… Oh my god… now I’m involved in a robbery?! I’m so fucked…” She groaned, holding her hands to her face in exasperation.   
Marissa looked up when she heard tapping come from the back. Frank was knocking on the window to get her attention, “We can work on that one later!”   
Marissa blushed, giving him the finger and turning away. Julie’s grip on the wheel tightened while Susie simply stared.   
…  
The old truck sped off, taking every backroad that came their way until they finally stopped. Pulling over, they choose a gravel path that lead into a wooded area. Julie pulled off to the side and put the truck in park. Shortly after, the group got out and headed to the back of the truck. The guys dragged their earnings towards the edge of the truck, sitting and letting their legs dangle off the end.   
Marissa stayed in the truck for a brief moment, pouting as she watched them chuckle and bask in their successful burglary. She slowly got out and walked over besides them, crossing her arms, disappointment clearly written on her face. Frank was the first to notice her presence and smirked.   
“What’s the matter Princess?” He quipped, knowing she was upset with their actions.   
She just huffed and shook her head. “So you rob from people too, huh? What won’t you do?” She growled under her breath, turning away from the cocky smiling mask that watched her.   
“I never said I was an angel. You should be thanking us, Princess!” He declared, reaching over into one of the bags as she watched with a concerned look.   
Frank turned back towards her and held out some packaged sandwiches, chips and powerade. Without her permission, her stomach growled, begging for food. She didn’t need to see his face to know Frank smirked at her body’s natural reaction.   
“While it’s against my morals to steal, I’m too far deep into these situations to try and rationalize my actions.” She held her stomach, pouting.   
“Just take the food already.” The smiling female mask grumbled, clearly annoyed at her.   
Marissa glanced at her and frowned, sighing and reluctantly taking the food from Frank. As soon as she opened the sandwich, her mouth drooled. There was no denying it lacked flavor, but she could care less as she downed it with powerade. Her dry throat crying from relief as she chugged the whole drink, coughing a bit at the end as her breathing tried to catch up with her.   
“Slow down there, Princess. We’ve got more than enough to satisfy ourselves.” Frank cooed and tossed her another drink.   
She tried to catch it and missed, cursing as she bent over to pick up the bottle. When she stood up, she noticed he was staring at her. She shivered at his look, his eyes watching her as she turned away and continued. He had his mask tilted to the side to eat and drink, along with the others. His lips curled into a smile at her actions.   
Marissa noticed that Susie had sat on a log next to the other girl in the group. They didn’t appear to be talking, just enjoying each other’s company as they ate, the taller girl whipping out a cigarette as Marissa approached.   
‘She definitely doesn’t like me… Well, maybe Susie can keep me company.’ The brunette thought as she sat besides Susie who squirmed a little when she got close.   
Marissa popped a few chips in her mouth and snuck a few glances to the smoking girl. Her guilt and curiosity got the better of her, “Hey, I’m sorry if I’ve upset you in some way.”   
Immediately, the female took in a deep grunt and took a swig of her cigarette. Marissa noticed this but continued anyway.   
“I was hoping we could start over? Maybe work this out.” She offered before flinching as the girl threw her cigarette on the ground and stomped on it roughly.   
“You can get the life fucking drained from your bitch face and leave this group.” She hissed and left the two girls alone in awkward silence.   
Susie quickly looked over to Marissa, wanting to see her expression. She noticed that the brunette looked hurt and confused. She debated on what to say, if she should say anything to begin with.   
“Well, looks like she isn’t the biggest fan of me.”  
Susie waved her hands quickly, “Julie takes a while to warm up to new people.”  
Marissa sighed, finishing her bags of chips as she pouted. “Well I shouldn’t assume you guys want to be friendly to me. I am kind of a huge burden.”  
“You’re not-“ Susie was cut off as Frank announced they were leaving.   
The ladies stood up and walked back to the truck. Marissa gasped as Frank tossed the garbage on the trail and headed to the driver’s seat.   
“Ah! You’re littering! Frank!” Marissa hissed as she picked up after him, noticing the other kids did the same. “You’re all littering!”   
She scampered around the area and picked up the plastic bags and garbage the best she could, tossing it in one of the bags they had.   
“You shouldn’t litter! You’ll kill the environment!” She scolded them.   
Julie rolled her eyes and got in the truck, ignoring her while the others just stared. Frank groaned and looked away from her scolding glares.   
“Yes MOM! Whatever…” He mocked her, waving his hand dismissively.   
“Don’t “whatever” me! Clean up after yourselves, at least care some!” She held her hands against her hips upset.   
Frank returned his gaze back to her and shrugged. “You really expect us to care about littering? It’s not like we’ll see the apocalypse of environment in our lives…”   
“You never think about the future…” She muttered and pulled herself up in the back of the truck. “I’m taking the back to hold on to the bags and garbage so it doesn’t fly off!”   
She parked herself in a corner and held on to the bags stubbornly. Frank tilted his head to the side amused. “Alright fine. Take the bumpy back you bipolar girl. Maybe it’ll break you in a bit…” He trailed off, heading to the front with Susie.   
The man in the skull mask sat in the back beside her. He rested his arms on the walls of the trunk casually. Marissa kept the bags close to her as Frank drove the truck off. The man in the back glanced over and watched the girl pout, holding on to the bags as the gust blew her hair around.   
“Do you really care about garbage that much?” He pondered, honestly curious at her behavior.   
She looked at him and shrugged. “Yes, well… at least this I can be in control of…”  
The man nodded, understanding what she meant. He leaned forward from his relaxed position and sighed. “I know this is a huge change in lifestyle for you, Princess. To be honest, I don’t know why Frank has kept you alive for this long. He must see something worthwhile in you.”  
“Please don’t call me that… My name is Marissa.” She finished, looking away from him, not sure what else to say.   
Skull shrugged, “Okay, Marissa… Do you want a mask?”  
She almost jumped out of her skin at hearing this. “What?! Why would I want a mask?”  
Skull shook his head. “No I mean, well… you wanted to go back to your old life after this right? If Frank lets you leave, you may want to hide your identity so you aren’t convicted.”  
His words hit her hard to the core. She looked down at the floor and seemed torn in her thoughts. “Yeah… I understand… Sorry I snapped at you. I just… I’d rather not get involved with your group much more. If I wear the mask, that makes things seem like I’m backing you up. Like I’m joining your legion of villains or something.”  
Skull chuckled at her joke and shrugged, not pushing the issue further. “Alright. Your decision, Marissa. Just offering. I’m sure we could find you one.” He laid back again casually, looking around at the scenery.   
Marissa watched him quietly and shook her head. “Why?” She whispered hoarsely. A part of her wished he hadn’t heard her, not wanting to hear the answer. “Why are you doing these horrible things? Following Frank’s orders?”  
Skull stared at her silently and shook his head. “You wouldn’t understand. We are all here for different reasons.”   
She groaned and shook her head. “I can’t understand why you would start killing people! What compels kids like you to kill?”  
“Revenge, protection, change.” He answered immediately. “We had nothing, we were nothing. Now our group makes us stand out. Makes people notice us and think twice before fucking with us.”  
His words resonated with her. At times, she felt those desires. Wanting to be noticed, even being feared was a fantasy of hers. But that’s just it- a fantasy. Not reality. The people in her life that took advantage of her, bullied her, how she wished she could get back at them. Something always held her back, whether it be commitments to family, friends, her career, her future. These kids don’t have any of those. Nothing to hold them back from their deadly desires. She sighed at her realization that she was comparing her life to them, comparing apples to oranges.  
‘These kids have been through different things than I have. I shouldn’t judge, but burglary and murder are never okay!’   
She was torn from her thoughts when the man coughed to get her attention.   
“What? Sorry I was distracted.”   
“I noticed. You do that a lot huh?” He chuckled, teasing her. “I said my name is Joe. I go by Joey though. If you really want, I can help you toss that garbage, the CORRECT way.”   
She blinked, surprised at his kindness and nodded. “Yes please. Thank you Joey.”  
He grunted back and was silent after that. Marissa went back to her thoughts, still in denial that these kids could kill those men.   
‘They’re just a bunch of kids. It seems like they haven’t had the best influences in their lives. They just need some direction in their life.’ She pondered the thought as the truck drove through the tiny backwoods town, a cloud of dust left in its wake.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things should be picking up here soon with the group. I have a lot of ideas written down on what I want to happen, I just gotta figure out how to write them coherently. Haha...   
> Well, thanks for reading. I may have the next chapter up today, otherwise it will be tomorrow.


	4. I Don't Want to Get Involved

The juvenile group decided to stay in the small town for a day. Using their newly earned money, the group pulled into an old, out of date motel to rent a few rooms. The kids removed their masks before pulling up, trying to look a little more inconspicuous. Frank and Julie went in together to check out some rooms, letting the others wait in the truck, ready to leave if needed. The clerk was finishing the transaction, counting out the bills when Frank laid a couple extra on the counter. Her eyes quickly shot over to his incentive, then returned to the kids. He gave her a small smile and played with the money on the counter, sliding it towards her. Without hesitation, she pocketed the extra and handed them their keys. Julie and Frank chuckled as she turned away and left the counter quickly. They headed out to the group waiting in the truck for them.  
“We should be good to stay here for the night. Even bribed the lady to stay quiet if the cops show up.” Julie explained as the group exited the truck.  
Marissa eyed the scenery of the shifty hotel. The parking lot was made of gravel and rocks. The buildings looked old and worn down, paint peeling and windows dusty. This place was in desperate need of TLC. The trees and shrubberies were growing out of control and dying off in certain places. This certainly wasn’t the place she would have stayed in her previous life. At this point, she expected the rooms to be filthy and riddled with bed bugs and roaches.  
The group followed Frank as he counted down the numbers on the doors. Finally, he found 18 and 19 across the hall from each other.  
“These are our rooms. Don’t lose the key or we all getta share one room.” He warned, tossing the key to Julie who nodded and turned to open the door behind her.  
“Of course I won’t. I’m not incompetent.”  
Julie didn’t spare a glance her way, but Marissa knew who it was directed at. She sighed, rubbing her arm uncomfortably, ‘this is gonna be a rough night sleeping with her. At least Susie seems nice.’  
The girls entered their room and looked around. It reeked of cigarette smoke and booze. Marissa checked the bathroom. It was cleaner than she expected. Sure, there were curious stains on the walls and shower, but at least the shower worked and had clean water. She left the bathroom and heard her shoes crinkle on the old, shaggy carpet. Marissa stopped at the beds and frowned.  
“Susie, can you get up a second?” She asked the pinkette who was sitting at the edge, kicking her feet.  
Susie titled her head confused but got up anyway. Julie lit a cigarette as she sat on the other bed, taking in a long hit to alleviate her stress. She watched Marissa pull out the blankets and inspect the sheets. She nodded then moved to the pillows that seemed clean, they even had a smell of cleaning detergent. Finally, lifting the mattress to check the edges. Clean for the most part.  
“Really? Is all this necessary?” Julie asked her, annoyance clear in her voice.  
“Yes.” Marissa nodded and laid the bed back down before moving over to Julie’s bed. “I’d rather not sleep with bed bugs and critters. Get up and I’ll check this one next.”  
Julie was astonished by her offer, but nodded and let Marissa inspect the bed. She didn’t expect Marissa to offer examining her bed after how cold she had been to her. Julie averted her eyes, a feeling of guilt taking over her at her harsh words. She tapped her cigarette in a plastic cup, getting rid of the ash, then took another drawl.  
“That one is good too. We should be okay not to be eaten alive tonight.” Marissa smiled a little in relief.  
“Who’s getting eaten tonight?” Frank asked just as he entered the room, smirking behind his lit cigarette at Marissa who huffed at his innuendo.  
“I just checked the beds for bed bugs. WE look clear. Did you check yours?” She asked, their shocked expressions answering her question.  
“Give me your keys and I’ll check.” She held out her hand, waiting for the key.  
Frank shrugged and tossed her the key, letting out a puff of smoke above his head. This time she reacted fast enough and caught them, after fumbling a bit. She huffed and headed across the hall, Frank following. Julie noticed this and sped after, following them into the men’s room. Susie and Joey looked at each other, their looks speaking to each other better than words could.  
“Let’s designate THAT room as the ash tray.” She nodded behind her as she fiddled with the old key. “I’d rather not sleep in a room filled with poison.”  
Frank rolled his eyes at her stubbornness, still he put out his cigarette on the wall besides the second room. Julie noticed this and watched in awe, looking down at her cigarette. Frank looked back at her, waiting for her to do the same. She shook her head and stayed in the hallway, not wanting to ruin her cigarette or listen to the new girl. Marissa watched him, surprised he actually listened to her and Julie was staying in the hallway.  
“Alright Princess.” He confirmed before reaching over and grabbing her hand. She let him take her wrist until he dropped his half-used cigarette in her palm.  
She grit her teeth in pain from the heat and disgust as she caught it. Frank forced her fingers over it, holding the cigarette in place.  
“You gotta save this for me for later then. Promise?” He looked into her eyes, his expression devious, yet serious.  
She rolled her eyes at him but nodded. “Fine.” She muttered, pocketing the cigarette. “If it will stop you from smoking in this room.”  
Marissa opened the door and headed inside. She checked the bathroom, like the previous room, and gave it a pass before moving to the beds. She checked the sheets, pillows and mattress of both. As she leaned over to tug off the blankets, Frank’s gaze shot right to her bum that stuck out. His eyes traveled down her legs, noticing how soft they looked. His dark eyes clouding with lust as he watched her examine the bed. Julie saw his stares at her and cleared her throat, breaking him out of his space. Marissa let the last mattress flop back down and tossed Frank back the key. He caught it and started fiddling with the keyring, spinning it around his finger.  
“You guys are good too. Just wanted to make sure they were clear since this motel isn’t the cleanest.”  
Frank nodded, “Thanks Princess. Good to know our beds are clean.”  
She shrugged a bit and walked over to Frank and the group. “So… what do you guys do now?”  
Frank lifted his shoulders and glanced at the old clock on the wall. “Well, it’s not even 7 yet. Prolly gonna explore the town. Maybe hit up another place.”  
“You’re gonna rob another place?!” She asked astonished at his casual stance.  
He nodded, not appearing to be affected by her words. He continued to twirl the key around his finger, bored.  
“In the same town? On the same day?” She added to her accusation.  
“Yeah. Why not? There’s gotta be a sick area in this town that has rich houses. Every little town has an area with at least one richie house.” He explained, chuckling at her baffled look.  
“How about you leave the fun to us and you can keep being a responsible old hag!” He offered, reaching out and ruffling up her hair like she was a child.  
She growled and swatted his hands away, fixing her hair in the mirror. She cursed his name and focused on her tangled hair. Frank’s eyes were still lit with excitement from his little show before. He rubbed his fingers together and relished in how soft her hair felt against his calloused fingers. Even with dirty hair, he still could admire her tresses. He liked how long it was. It gave him ideas he wanted to try out in these “clean” beds. He imagined tugging her hair, moving her head with it so he had better access to her neck and chin. He wanted to pull on her hair, putting her pretty mouth to good use. He LOVED being in control when he fucked. Even the thought of having someone at his mercy was a huge turn-on for him. Being that Marissa was already partially under his control, he couldn’t help his dirty mind from desiring to do explicit things to her.  
She was new territory to him, up until now he had been with a few partners, all of them his age or slightly younger. Many of the girls were naïve, under the influence of their raging hormones and not caring more than to have a good time. Marissa was different. She was a challenge. A mature woman who knew what she wanted and wouldn’t be an easy, quick fuck for him. Her responses, her opinions, and even her preaching were all fresh and exciting to him. He could tell she cared about him and his friends, something very few people did. Additionally, being around her constantly didn’t help. He couldn’t stop his hormone-influenced mind from noticing every new, little feature that made him want to get frisky right then and there.  
“Earth to Frank!”  
Frank flinched at Joey’s sudden words and waving hand. He blinked away his thoughts and growled a bit, losing the sensation of his explicit thoughts. He looked at Joey annoyed.  
“What?” He asked bitterly.  
Joey shrugged and glanced at the group. “Well, we were wondering where you wanted to hit up? We could go around town and scope out a good location.”  
“Hmph… yeah sounds good. Let’s go.” He caught his key to stop its spinning, locking the door after they all vacated the room.  
Marissa followed the group back to the truck, looking around at each member closely now that she could see them in good lighting without their masks. She looked at Susie first, her bright neon pink hair stood out in the group. Still, it complimented her light skin and grey-blue eyes. It was easy to tell she was a timid girl, but could be deadly when needed. Susie seemed to be the shortest of the group, especially compared to Joey who was the tallest. He had short, almost buzzed, dark hair and a short beard. When he had his mask on, he would put on dark ashes around them to cover his dark skin and appearance. He seemed to be the most prepared when it came to hiding his identity. Next was Julie. She seemed to wear almost the exact same clothes as Frank. Sometimes they were hard to tell apart in the dark. Julie had fair skin, pretty green eyes and short brown hair. She was just above Susie’s height and seemed to carry herself confidently wherever she went.  
Last was Frank. He was the second tallest of the group and the obvious leader. While rash and impulsive, he had definitely earned the loyalty of his colleagues. He had short dark brown hair, dark brown eyes and light skin. A small scar went across the bridge of his nose, a mark from one of his past endeavors, no doubt. Then there was his obvious tattoo of a skull on fire adorned on his neck, below his chin. It was easy to tell he didn’t mind standing out. The group sure was a unique one. An outsider’s opinion of them would guess that they were impulsive highschoolers up to no good. Not far from the target but still missing an important, deadly addition. Marissa was still in shock, maybe even denial, at how casual they seemed to act about killing fellow humans for people their age.  
A finger tapped her forehead, breaking Marissa from her thoughts. Frank had put in his smirking mask when they got to the truck and noticed she was spacing out.  
“You still with us, Princess?” he asked her while the others put on their masks and climbed in the back.  
She pouted a little, shooing his finger from her forehead. “Yeah. Not like I have much of a choice…”  
“Aww don’t look at it like that.” Frank whined and stepped beside her, putting an arm around her shoulders to make her uncomfortable. “See it as a chance to learn to have fun.”  
“Learn!?” She asked him shocked, trying to move his arm a bit for more space.  
“Yes. Learn to live a little. You’re too uptight Princess.” He led her to the door and opened it for her.  
She huffed a sigh of exasperation. “My idea of fun isn’t robbing someone and breaking the law.”  
He shrugged at her, closing the door after and heading to the driver’s side. “At least I ain’t ever boring.”  
He looked back at his friends in the back of the truck, most of them were focusing on sharpening their knives or grabbing a quick snack. Frank nodded at them, pulling out and leaving the motel, driving around the small town for their next hit.  
………..  
After driving around the small town for an hour, the group decided to rob a large estate in the woods. It appeared to be secluded from other houses and was surrounded by a large, lonely forest. Marissa held a hand to the window, looking at the dark, eerily quiet house. The group had already gotten out and were talking about a plan on how to get in and if they should split up. Frank looked over his shoulder at Marissa, noticing her worried expression.  
“You’re coming with us Princess.” He declared, shocking the whole group.  
“What?! Why?” Marissa whispered, her eyes widening in fear that she would participate in the crime. “I don’t want to get involved with your guys’ crimes!”  
“Aw come on. Live a little on the dark side.” He cooed at her.  
“No way! I don’t want to get involved in your “legion of rapscallions”!” She held up her fingers to make quotation marks.  
Frank held a hand to the chin of his mask, deep in thought for a brief minute. “You know what I think?”  
She just raised a brow, waiting for his response.  
“Why be a good person and a pushover when the rest of the world is full of evil and darkness? Good people are always the first to die. Only assholes live long enough to make a difference.”  
Everyone was silent at his words, Marissa’s face taken over by shock. She shook her head after a moment, unable to look at him.  
“You don’t seriously believe that… do you?” She whispered, her heart breaking a bit.  
He was dead silent, staring her down. “Of course I do. Nothing’s proved me wrong yet.”  
“You haven’t been looking hard enough then…” She muttered under her breath, turning away from the group and heading to the truck.  
“I don’t want you running off. Or driving away, leaving us up shit creek.”  
Marissa immediately shook her head at him. “I’m not going with you guys. I’m waiting in the truck. I promise I won’t run off. Trust me…” She trailed off when she saw Frank seemed unconvinced. “Running away in the woods at night isn’t the smartest idea and I couldn’t take the truck and leave anyway since you’ll have the keys, and I don’t know how to drive a stick shift.” She held up one finger after the other to illustrate her point.  
Frank’s eyes scanned her face, looking for doubt. His better judgement set aside, he decided to believe the innocent girl. He let out a sigh of annoyance. “Fine. You will stay in the truck and watch for any people that may interrupt us. If you decide to run off, just know we will find and kill you. No hesitation. Got it?”  
Marissa nodded and shuddered a bit. She started to think of his previous words. ‘They shouldn’t need to kill anyone right?’ She turned on her heel and hopped back in the truck after they decided to walk off.  
…  
Frank and his friends reached the fence of the estate and climbed over quietly, so not to wake the guard dogs chained in the back. Their huffs of breath and quick steps broke the silence of the night as they made it to the back of the house. They held their bodies close to the wall and peered around the corner. Frank waved for them to follow as he motioned to a window on the side. He stepped aside to let Joey work on opening the window since he could reach it better. After it was open, they hopped in one by one.  
The room was dark, not a single light turned on as they observed the old room. It seemed to be a small library or storage space for documents. There were several bookshelves filled to the brim. As Joey walked past, he held out a finger and traced it along the wood, collecting dust. Frank took the lead and peered around the corner of the door. When the coast was clear, he left and walked towards the center room of the estate. The ground floor had 6 rooms on it, one being the library. A winding staircase led up to the second floor, dim lights lit up the main room. The whole estate was dead silent.  
The group huddled together and whispered their plan of splitting up and checking out each of the rooms before regrouping back in the library. They all nodded and took a different room to explore. Frank and Julie took separate rooms on the second floor while Joey and Susie stayed on the ground to pick a room.  
Frank slowly opened the door, peeking inside to see what was inside. When he didn’t hear anything, he creaked open the door and looked for the lights. After searching the walls, he found them and lit the room. It appeared to be an extra room. This one had more papers and files on the tables and floor. There were old, faded pictures on the walls of people. Their appearances too far worn to be recognizable. He searched the room for any loose boards or hidden compartments but found none. Finally, in the corner of the room, he found a vault. Frank smirked under his mask and listened closely as he picked the lock. In a few moments, it popped open. Eager to see inside, he pulled the creaky door open to more papers and two wads of cash. He pocketed the money and looked at the papers, curious to learn what they were and why they were locked behind the vault.  
…  
Marissa felt her heart rate increase as time ticked on. She wasn’t sure how long they took robbing a house. They seemed to have an attack plan but she didn’t know how this would normally go for them.  
‘I’m sure it takes a while… I just don’t know what to think of this whole situation.’  
Marissa shivered, feeling cold in her tank top and shorts, alone in the woods. She tapped her fingers nervously against her arms and looked around for any headlights. It had been silent, almost too silent for a while now. Even the noise of insects and animals seemed to be absent in these lonely woods.  
She was shaken from her thoughts when she heard the dogs barking loudly, their chains rattling as they were held in place. Marissa’s eyes shot over towards the ruckus and felt a shiver run down her spine. Her heartbeat was pounding in her ears from fear that something terrible had happened. Were the kids okay? They were armed and had done these crimes before but…  
She internally debated with herself, biting her lip nervously. She let out a curse and hopped out of the truck, running towards the house. She kept quiet as she could when she saw the dogs barking at the house. She stayed close to the wall and hid in the shadows.  
‘How do I get around them?’ She thought, noticing a picket fence on the side of the house instead of a wired one.  
She nodded and crouched down low, walking close to the ground to avoid being spotted as she followed the fence towards the front. Her movements were slowed as she trudged through the fresh mud and wet grass. ‘Please tell me I’m overreacting…’  
…  
“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?! You let her go you bastard!” Frank yelled at the older man who held a gun to Susie’s head.  
Susie whimpered as she tried to pry the man’s arm off her neck. She coughed due to his tight hold. The older man was wearing dark clothes and a long coat that covered most of his body. His greying hair was disheveled under his old black hat he wore. The man had large bags under his eyes and a scruffy beard. He looked like he hadn’t taken much care of himself.  
“What am I doing? You damn kids broke into my house! Snooped through my things! What did you take? You came here for my research didn’t you! I knew I couldn’t trust them!” The man went on and on, getting angrier and tightening his hold on Susie.  
Susie cried out and struggled some more against him. Frank and Julie watched in horror from the balcony of the second floor while Joey sat on the floor, holding his bleeding head. …  
...Susie had entered one of the rooms that was open. She listened as she slowly creaked open the door, noticing a small lamp was on in the back. This room appeared to be a study with a desk in the back. This room was also in shambles, papers everywhere and books open sporadically placed across the floor. She headed straight to the back and rummaged through the desk, looking for valuables.  
She was too preoccupied with her search and didn’t notice a door opening to her side. A man slammed open the door and pointed a gun at the girl who jumped back in fear, crying out in surprise as he ran at her. He caught her off guard enough that she froze, not thinking to grab her knife in defense. The man held her against him tightly, he reeked of smoke and body odor.  
“What the hell are you doing here? What are you stealing from me?” He interrogated her as she cried for help. “Shut the hell up! You have friends don’t you, you little bitch?”  
The sound of dogs barking in the backyard was obvious from their screams. He inwardly cursed at their lack of protection as he hauled her over to the door. Getting to the door, he slammed it open just as Joey ran over. Joey had heard her cries and came over to help, but was instead hit by a hard door to the mask. The old man cursed when he noticed Joey sitting on the ground, holding his head in pain. Two more figures ran out from the second floor and he yelled out in frustration.  
“How many of you cunts are here!?” He screamed at Susie who cried for help. “If any of you moves, the girl’s brains get blown out.” He moved her over towards the center to get a good look at all the intruders....  
“Let go of Susie you fucker!” Frank yelled, starting to move down the steps when Julie held him back.  
“What are you doing?! If you run at them, he’ll kill Susie!” Julie whispered shakily, feeling her anger swell up within her.  
Frank reduced his thrashing but clenched his fists angrily. This was just like the night they committed their first kill. He felt that darkness creep up on him, the aura of the house increasing the malice in his intentions.  
“You fucking kids better start explaining or I pull the trigger!” He yelled, pointing his gun from Susie’s head towards Joey on the ground, then towards the two on the balcony.  
As he moved his gun to return to Susie’s head, he screamed in pain, involuntarily firing the gun at the wall as he collapsed forward. He dropped the gun when he hit the ground. Susie gasped, surprised he was suddenly on the ground in pain, and dashed away from the man. The intruders watched as blood seeped from the back of his head and began pooling on the ground. A figure was behind the man holding a small coat rack in their hands.  
Marissa stood there, breath shaky as she looked down at the man on the ground, groaning in pain. All of the intruders were too stunned for words at her actions. She took a small step forward, not looking away as she assessed his condition. He still seemed to be alive, but stunned.  
“I’m sorry about this, but you had a gun on Susie.” She explained in a shaky voice, taking a step forward and glancing at Susie to make sure she was alright.  
...Marissa had made it to the front yard and peered around the corner. She noticed the garage was open and had a faint light within in. A little ways past was the front door that was in the faint light of the garage. She slowly looked around then bolted to the side of the house. She glanced in the garage and didn’t seem to notice anyone so she ran past it. She took a moment, catching her breaths as her heart raced. She crouched down again, walking slowly under the wide window until she got to the front. She felt around for the handle and noticed the door was cracked, open for her to enter.  
She froze when she heard screaming coming from the inside. She listened close to the door. She heard an unfamiliar man’s voice, then Frank’s yells. Something was wrong. She bit her lip again, took a few shaky breaths and slowly opened the door. The front had a small archway over it, enough room to keep a few coat racks and closets for shoes. She kept close to the wall and crept closer, getting a good idea what was unfolding between her eyes. Her eyes widened in fear when the man motioned to Joey with a gun. He was armed and they were caught off guard....  
Her gaze shot to Susie who was shaking in her boots. Marissa furrowed her brows and reached over besides her, grabbing the unused coat rack and kept it close. She was in enough darkness to stay hidden until she pulled her weapon back and swung fast, nailing him in the back of the head before he could point his gun back at Susie.  
Marissa saw that Susie remained largely unharmed and gave the pinkette a small, nervous smile. The man on the ground grumbled when he could see what happened. He looked back at the new person and growled. They weren’t looking at him and he swung his leg out at hers. Effectively tripping her and causing her to fall to the hard tile. The coat racked clanked as it left her hands and rolled away. Marissa grit her teeth in pain, holding her head that smacked on the floor.  
“You bitch! I’ll make you pay for that!” He hissed, reaching out and grabbing her by the foot.  
He tugged her towards him on the floor. Fear pulsed through her veins, helping her regain her bearings as she screamed. She kicked at his face until he let go. Frank and Julie gasped as the man grabbed the coat rack that rolled towards him and helped himself up enough to lunge at Marissa. She was trying to get up from the floor to run, but kept sliding from her wet, muddy shoes.  
The man had grabbed her leg and pulled her back effectively this time, getting on top and straddling her. He was trying to catch his breath as he held her down, holding up the coat rack to hit her with. Marissa cried out in fear and tried to hold him back as he tried swinging at her with it.  
Immediately, killer’s instincts took over in Susie as she ran over and jumped on top of the man. She pulled out her knife and began constantly stabbing the large man in the back and shoulders, trying to make him drop the coat rack.  
“LET GO OF HER YOU FUCKER!” Susie screamed so loud it seemed to shake the foundation as she continuously stabbed his arm, shoulder and back.  
After a few stabs, the man cried in pain and dropped the coat rack. He used his free hand to push Susie back with adrenaline-filled strength. He noticed that the others had begun to race over towards him and the girl and cursed. He turned back to her and put his hands around her neck, trying to choke her in a feral final act.  
“If I’m dying here I’m taking you with me you bitch!” He yelled at the terrified girl.  
Marissa whimpered in pain, doing her best to pry the man’s hands away from her neck as he strangled her. Suddenly, a knife was thrown and hit him square in the eye. He immediately retracted his hands and held them to his face, sitting off her. He tried to pull the knife out, but the pain was unbearable and he was losing a lot of blood, becoming light headed. Julie and Joey were directly behind him and jumped. Using their knives to stab his neck and chest as many times as they could until he stopped moving and became a bloody mess on the floor.  
Susie ran over to Marissa, kneeling besides her and crying out in fear, hoping Marissa wasn’t hurt too bad. Marissa coughed and took deep breaths, regaining herself as Susie slowly helped her up. Marissa shuddered at the bloody man on the floor, Joey and Julie standing over him. She then looked up at the staircase and saw Frank was looking down at them, his arm outstretched. When he noticed her get up, he rested his arm down and sped towards the group, pulling out his knife as he walked past the man.  
“Are you okay Princess?!” He got down on his knee to get a better look at her.  
She noticed how worried he was and couldn’t help but feel a little happy he cared about her safety. She just nodded at him and glanced over at the man on the floor.  
“I heard the dogs barking, so I came to see if you were okay…” She explained with a hoarse voice, still shaking from her near-death moments ago.  
“Well, we’re glad you did! You saved Susie’s life!” Joey proclaimed, kneeling besides her as well.  
Susie nodded her head quickly and leaned over, giving Marissa a tight embrace. She didn’t say much, but Marissa thought she could hear some sniffling coming from behind her mask. Marissa looked over at Susie and rested a hand against one of her arms. The brunette was still catching her breath, fear pulsing through her from the encounter and second kill she witnessed. Still, she had to remain strong.  
Frank watched her comfort Susie who hugged the brunette tightly. He smiled under his mask at this. When he noticed she was getting better, he got up and nodded. “Okay. Let’s get going. I’m sure all this noise will catch someone’s attention.”  
The group nodded and quickly sped outside, Susie and Frank helping Marissa run as they made it to the truck and sped off, leaving that murder scene in the dust.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What did I tell you about the story picking up a bit? XD  
> Dunno when the next chapter will be out. I've written most of it but it needs some serious editing. It took a route I wasn't expecting. I always worry about characters being too OOC or cringy so I wanna make sure this one isn't too all over the place.  
> Thanks for reading!  
> -Update- I went back and tried to fix this chapter a bit. I did not know that my italics in word would not transfer over to Archive. Tried to make it a little easier to read. I hope that makes a little more sense. Let me know if there is a better way to do that.


	5. You Have Some Good in You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well here is the next chapter. I did not foresee it going this direction, so I hope it is not too cringy or OOC. I get to a point where I edit so much I don't want to read it anymore and just post it. ^_^'   
> I also wanted to provide a couple of brief warnings about this chapter. There are mentions of suicidal talk/thoughts. I don't believe I went into too much detail, but I figured it would be good to mention it since everyone reacts differently to the topic. There are also more sexual themes in this chapter, some non-con actions involved. Ummm… I think that was all of them. I will update the tags with these. 
> 
> Also! I wanted to thank everyone that left a kudos on my story! :) It means a lot to me that some people are enjoying my work. Your support helps me keep my motivation when writing. So, thanks a bunch!

The ride back was relatively silent. Susie stayed close to Marissa and held her arm close, as if letting her go would make her disappear. When Frank pulled into the lot, the group quickly got out. Frank ordered Joey to get some ice, Julie to grab the bags of items he stole from the gas station, and Susie to help him carry Marissa to the room.   
The trio headed to room 19 swiftly, Marissa’s headache pounding from the poor lighting. They helped her along, one arm around each shoulder as they turned the last corner and made it to the rooms. Frank fumbled with the key, the old door lock stuck as he tried to turn it. After a few tries, it popped open and he held it open for Susie to help Marissa inside. She helped her to the bed, sitting Marissa down panickily. As soon as she was able to hold herself up, Susie toss her mask to the side, wanting to get a better look at her hurt brunette friend. Susie’s expression worried when she noticed Marissa groan and hold her head in pain.   
“Hang in there. We’ll get you some ice for your head soon.” Susie reassured her, holding her hand as she sat beside her.   
Marissa glanced over at Susie, if it wasn’t for her pained expression, she would have been surprised. Literally, she had met these kids two days ago. Sure, some of them had been decent to her, but none seemed all that concerned with her well-being. No one seemed to really ask how she was holding up after that fateful day they met. Frank seemed to care a little, asking about how she got in that situation, but aside from that not much. No one worried about her mental state traveling with delinquents, criminals and witnessing their crimes. Now that she had saved Susie, things seemed to take a 180.   
‘They really do care about each other… I suppose I wouldn’t trust outsiders if I were in their shoes.’ She thought before glancing at Susie, thanking her.  
She moved her eyes on Frank and nodded at him, giving him a shaken-up smile. “I should be thanking you. You were the one that threw that knife, right?”  
Frank simply nodded, he had his arms crossed as he leaned against the wall, keeping a worried eye on her.  
Marissa let out a sigh, wincing a bit from her headache and mumbled. “Not gonna lie, that was an impressive shot…”  
Frank heard this comment and smiled under his mask. Julie sped in the room a moment later and laid out the bags on the other bed.   
“I think we have some pain medicine in here…” She trailed off, rummaging through the bag.   
She found some medicine and grabbed a drink for Marissa, handing her the items.   
“Here. This should help the pain.” Julie handed her the items gently, making sure she could hold them herself.   
Marissa noticed this caring side of Julie and smiled a bit. She took her medicine and thanked her soon after. Julie just nodded and sat on the other bed, waiting for further instruction. Joey barged in the room soon after, a sack of ice in his grasp as he held it out to Marissa. She was about to take it before Julie stopped him.   
“Wrap it in a towel first. That way you won’t give her freezer burn.” She walked into the bathroom and used a hand towel to hold the bag of ice.   
“Good thinking Jules.” Joey complimented and let her hand off the ice to Marissa.   
The brunette smiled and held the bag to her head, letting out a groan as the ice cooled down the pain. The group watched Marissa in silence, watching in case she needed their help. Julie was the first to speak up.   
“Why?” She asked out of the blue.   
Marissa glanced over to her on the bed. Julie avoided her eye contact timidly and continued.   
“Why did you come help us? You could have run away. Or not helped Susie… She could have…” She whispered the last part with a shaky voice, not finishing her sentence.   
Marissa frowned at her and shook her head. “Honestly, I’m not sure what came over me. I was just going to check on you guys. I heard the dogs barking and my worry got the best of me. I was hoping to see you guys were ok, then head back to the truck… but when I saw that man grabbing Susie and pointing at gun at you all my body kind of took over my mind. I definitely didn’t think I would hit a coat rack over the back of someone’s head tonight…”  
Julie snickered a little at this and just nodded. “Well… thanks anyway.”   
She got up and headed for the door, tossing her mask aside. Frank raised a brow at her and looked over his shoulder. “Where you headin’?”  
“I’m going out to pick up some food for us. We don’t have much more from the gas station. Anyone want to come with me?” Julie offered the group, looking at Susie.   
Susie looked at Marissa who closed her eyes from the pain. She shook her shoulder a bit until she got her attention. “Are you gonna be okay?”  
Marissa smiled at her and nodded weakly. “Yeah, I’m fine. You can go with her.”   
Susie watched her hesitantly a bit, slowly letting go of her hand. She stood up and took a few steps towards Julie, then stopped. The group noticed this and examined her curious, nervous movements. Susie stood in place and fiddled with her fingers anxiously, muttering a few things to herself. A quick movement and Susie turned back to face Marissa. The brunette glanced up at her confused as she leaned in close to her face.   
“Susie? What’s-?” Marissa’s question was cut off by a pair of soft lips pressed on hers.   
Her eyes widened while Susie closed her eyes tightly, feeling anxious yet excited to kiss her. Marissa and the group couldn’t believe Susie was kissing Marissa. Everyone froze in place as she pressed her lips to the brunette. Marissa felt something hard peek out through Susie’s kiss. Then remembered Susie had braces on her teeth; she couldn’t help the metal that poked through her kiss. Marissa remembered those days in high school; seemed like forever ago. Soon enough, Susie pulled back and held her hands to her flustered face, trying to hide.  
Marissa’s face was bright red, her expression filled with surprise and embarrassment. “Wh-where did that come from?!”   
“I-I-I’m sorry! I just… you s-saved my life and you-you’ve been really nice to me and you’re really prettyandIwantedtokissyouandIcouldn’thelpmyselfand ugh…! Please don’t hate me!” She stammered out her words quickly trying her best to hide behind her covered hands.   
Marissa blinked at her, still stunned she got a sudden kiss from Susie. ‘I’ve never kissed a girl before…’ She touched her lips and blushed a little. The brunette felt her hot face flare up more, she looked away from Susie, thinking about what to say. She didn’t want to make the pinkette feel bad, the kiss was innocent enough, and she understood that everyone’s minds were still racing from that intense, life-threatening situation. “N-no… you’re okay Susie. I was just… surprised is all… I hadn’t kissed a girl until now. I guess I wasn’t sure what to do…”  
Susie’s eyes widened at this and she gasped in shock. “You mean… you don’t hate me?”  
Marissa shook her head, still looking away shyly, unsure of what to say. “No… it’s not that big of a deal.” ‘Now the question is… do I tell my boyfriend about this when I get back?’ She thought, awkward.  
Susie smiled behind her hands and nodded. “Sorry! I-I won’t kiss you out of the blue without asking!”  
Susie looked from Marissa to the group, feeling awkward and self-conscious at her display of affection. She was normally a shy person, yet with her emotions in a frenzy, she felt her better judgement fade. Susie was happy she kissed her, but more relieved that Marissa didn’t seem that mad at her actions. She quickly sped off towards Julie, happy to have an out from everyone’s stares. “Let’s go get some food, oh-okay Julie? Okay!” She decided for her and dragged Julie off frantically.   
Julie chuckled but nodded and held out a hand at Frank. He tossed her the set of keys as the girls headed towards the truck.   
“How was the kiss?” Julie nudged her friend.   
Susie gasped and averted her eyes anxiously. “It-it was fine… she didn’t really kiss back, but I think that’s cuz she was so surprised.”   
Julie nodded in agreement. “At least she handled the sudden kiss well.”  
Susie just nodded, a red blush on her face as she thought about the kiss. She had a small smile on her face as she walked off with her friend, biting the nail of her thumb.   
…  
Back in the motel room, the three remaining people were left in awkward silence. Joey spoke up, looking over at the girl who still blushed embarrassed.   
“Try not to hate Susie too much… she isn’t usually that impulsive…”   
Marissa cocked a brow at his words. “Why would I hate her?”  
He shrugged, looking away awkwardly. “Well… at our school she was made fun of for being a lesbian and didn’t have many chances at having a romantic relationship with someone. It was a small-minded town and being gay wasn’t widely accepted by most people…”  
Marissa frowned at this and looked away. “I see… Well, I honestly don’t care what people identify as. I was more surprised that she kissed me out of the blue. I sure wasn’t expecting that...”  
Frank chuckled at this and shook his head at her. “You’re telling me you didn’t pick up on all the stares and nervousness when she was around you?”  
Marissa pouted a little at Frank, thinking back to her behavior. She moved the ice around before responding. “No… I guess I thought she was just a nervous person…”  
“She is, but moreso when she’s around someone she’s attracted to.” Frank explained and Joey simply nodded.   
“I see…”  
The room was quiet again until Joey let out a groan and stood up. He removed his mask and headed for the door. “I’m gonna go for a quick run now that we have some down time. After that sad display at the house, I need to toughen up more. Will you be okay on your own?”  
Frank nodded at him and watched as he left the room, closing the door after him and leaving two people left. Frank glanced back at Marissa, noticing her move around on the bed to get comfortable. He removed his mask and sat on the bed beside her.   
“Do you need any more ice or drugs, Princess?”  
“No. I’ll be fine for now. Thanks Frank.” She responded with a small smile. She looked away and slowly back at him. “Thanks for saving my life… again. I really am a weakling, huh?” She pouted at the end.  
Frank shook his head and let out a sigh. “You’re not that much of a weakling. You saved my friend today and fought off that senile bastard. That definitely counts for somethin’.”  
She nodded and looked away, thinking back to the man who threatened Susie. “When he had that gun… I forgot about everything else… I didn’t even think about the fact that I was saving a group of killers from a could-be killer. Even though I’ve witnessed you all murder people in cold blood, I just can’t come to believe you’re all that bad of people.” She looked over at Frank and stared him deep in the eyes. “Maybe I’m a fool for thinking this but… I really just see you all as a bunch of dumb kids that don’t know any better... I believe you guys still have good inside of you. I see that good nature when you help each other, look out for one another. You may even care more than some family by blood do… God my Stockholm Syndrome is making me mad. Hahaha…”   
Frank was stunned by her words. His eyes widened as he felt this girl radiate genuine kindness for him and his friends. He wasn’t sure what to say back without sounding like a sappy pansy, so he stuck with the brief path.   
“Well… for whatever it’s worth… thanks for the kind words, Princess… No one else really cared, so we do. I’ve always been put down in my life… so many negatives were piling up… taking over. It had gotten to the point where I stopped caring about most things in my life… even myself. Then I met Julie and things changed. She seemed to get me. Then Joey and Susie soon after and then we were lookin’ out for each other. Always had each other’s backs. No matter what we did…”  
He trailed off, looking away from her as he thought about that night that defined everything for the group. He didn’t want to quite tell her about dragging his friends through the mud with him. He felt an overwhelming darkness no one else could, an inclination to kill that man who threatened his family. He began to feel that same darkness in that house when Susie was held hostage-when Marissa had been assaulted. Frank was unsure if the others had felt this with him, or if he was starting to go crazy with rage.  
Marissa noticed how silent and solemn he had gotten. She tilted her head to get a better look at his face. Frank snapped out of his thoughts when he noticed her staring at him with worry in her eyes. He shook his head and cleared his throat uncomfortably.   
“Well… On another subject, I thought of a way to repay your debt to us.” He spoke suddenly.   
Marissa raised a brow in confusion, looking at Frank for answers.   
“Well… you asked what we wanted from you. We saved your life that day and brought you along with us. You gotta return the favor.” He smiled, pushing his finger against her forehead. “You saved Susie today. Your debt to her is repaid in full. Now you have three more to go.”  
Marissa’s jaw dropped a bit at this. “I have to save… your lives?”   
Frank chuckled and ruffled up her hair again, teasing her. “Yeah! You can do that no problem and I’m sure the others would agree on these terms. You already saved one of us, three more is nothing!” He gave her a sly wink at the end.  
Marissa groaned and used her free hand to hold a hand to her face. “I-I don’t… I don’t know how I’m going to save three more people… but if that’s what I gotta do to get back home then I’ll have to figure something out.”   
Frank rolled his eyes at her, turning his body a little to face her better. “Oh come on. Are we really that bad to be around?”  
Marissa nodded at him right away. “Yes! You rob and murder people! Why is that so hard to comprehend?”  
Frank just chuckled at her, not pushing the topic further. He leaned back, letting his arms hold him up when he felt something slide out of his pocket. Two wads of bundled cash slipped out, reminding him of his earnings.   
“Oh yeah… We got so caught up with that old bastard that I forgot to show off my earnings.” Frank held up the cash he had stolen then pulled out some papers he accidentally grabbed.   
He got up and walked over to the small table, tossing the earnings on the counter while Marissa watched.  
“What did you take?”  
“Eh… It wasn’t that great of a haul, but I did get around 2k from his vault.”  
He smirked when her eyes widened at the amount.   
“Two-thousand dollars is not a great haul?”   
“Nope. We could have done better if we had more time. Oh well, can’t complain with cash.” He smiled over at her as she stared at the money. “Am I sexy now that I got money to my name?”  
Her eyes widened when she realized she was staring at the money. She blushed red in embarrassment and shook her head. “I’m not that interested in money…”  
Frank raised a curious brow at this. “Oh? So you’re interested in something else?”   
His smirk was evident through his voice. She blushed madly and waved her free hand back and forth at him.   
“Nonono! You misunderstand me!”   
He shrugged at her, not letting his smirk fade as he walked over. Frank stopped in front of her and leaned in close, his face inches from her red one. Marissa’s blush was radiating so much heat, he could feel it inches apart.   
“You know what I think?” He murmured in a low timbre, his breaths hitting her face when he spoke. “I think that kiss before was really hot. SO sexy.”   
Marissa flinched at this, moving back more to get some space from him. Her voice lost at his embarrassing words. Frank snickered at her cute behavior and leaned forward, following her form so he could put his arms on either side of her.   
“You know what else I think? You being a badass and saving my friend was so fucking attractive. No wonder Susie was compelled to kiss you…”   
His eyes traveled across her face and roamed lower, appreciating the skin that was showing from her tank top. They stopped at her cleavage, admiring the size of her breasts. She noticed him lick his lips like a wolf and tighten his grip on the sheets beside her. Her blush deepened and traveled to her neck, as he stared at her breasts like a hungry animal.   
“F-Frank…” She stammered out, cursing in her head at her nervous voice.   
“Mm?” He growled, his dark eyes moved up to her face.   
“Don’t look at me like that and PLEASE give me some space.” She begged, trying to regain control of the situation and push on his chest for room.   
Frank chuckled, her pushes ineffective as he leaned in close. “Look at you like what? I always look at you like this…” He used one of his hands to hold her chin so he could stare deep in her eyes.   
“You… You know exactly what you’re doing! I…I have a boyfriend!” She brought up, using one of her hands to tug at his arm that held her face.   
“Yes… but is he here to make you feel good?” He cooed her, ignoring her pushes away. “You’ve been through so much shit in the past couple days. Don’t you want a release from all that stress?”  
She closed her eyes as he moved in closer, breathing against her face. He chuckled and tilted her head to the side, giving him access to her neck. He let out a few deep breaths against her neck, before taking in her scent. Frank couldn’t help himself, she smelled so good; sweat, blood, leftover perfume, and something au-natural from her. The combination was addicting to him, causing his brain to fog and his pants to tighten. His inhibitions being cast aside, he let his tongue slide out and give a long lick from her neck to her chin.   
Marissa gasped at this, her eyes shooting open at the sensation of a cool substance on her warm skin. She shoved him away from her neck quickly, wiping up the saliva. The lick wasn’t the only thing that shocked her.   
“Is your tongue pierced?” She asked, looking at the man pinning her to the bed.   
Frank chuckled as he stayed overtop of her. Slowly he let his tongue stick out, flashing off that silver bud at the tip. He felt his confidence raise at her shocked and curious expression. ‘Boyfriend doesn’t have a piercing eh?’ He thought to himself, his ego increasing.  
Frank let himself lean on one of his arms and brought his free hand to his face; he formed a V with his two fingers, making lewd motions with his quick, slippery tongue between them. Marissa’s face flared up again at his sexual actions and put all her power in pushing him away. Frank had to catch himself, but still stayed overtop of her.   
“Nononono! We’re done with this charade Frank! Stop teasing me!” She hissed, still pushing him back for space.   
“Who says I’m teasing you? Maybe I want to eat you out as a reward for today.” Frank smirked ravenously at her flustered face. “I assume you’ve never been eaten out by a man with a piercing. Let me tell ya, it’s an all new experience.” He leaned closer and whispered this in her ear, giving her lobe a slow lick.   
Frank laughed with hearty breaths as he felt himself grow hard at the dirty talk. He had been thinking about doing these things to her since the day he rescued her from those dirtbags. Really, she was an attractive girl, and apparently not just to him. He wanted to watch that pretty little face twist into pleasure and ecstasy as he made her cum. Fuck, if he didn’t have a sliver of self-control left, he would fuck her silly right now. He knew not to push things too far; he had to set aside his own sexual desires and focus on only her. He knew that she would never let him get that far after day two of meeting. But maybe, just maybe, he could sneak some dirty little intentions in her mind and he could sway her to his side…  
Marissa felt her body shiver when the metal of his stud followed his wet lick on her earlobe, it really did feel foreign against her skin. She had never gotten a piercing, not even on her earlobes. She was always wary of needles and stayed away when at all possible. She couldn’t imagine how painful that piercing must have felt, or even that large, flaming tattoo on his neck.   
Marissa’s thoughts were shattered when she felt Frank move one of his hands down her side, sliding to her hip. He rubbed soft circles against her skin, massaging the area gently. His touch was delicate but became needy and aggressive as he moved towards her inner thigh. Her legs were held close together, keeping him from exploring her more intimate parts further. She could tell he was getting annoyed when she kept her legs together tightly. He groaned in her ear, whispering dirty nothings as he pressed on.   
Frank let out a deep sigh when she wouldn’t allow him entrance, he pulled back from her thighs and rested his arms so they were on either side of her head. His dark eyes locked with her serious blue ones, their looks communicating more than their words had. Frank noticed her stern, unchanging expression and sighed.   
“Alright alright. I get it, yer not interested.” He grumbled and got off her, standing by the end of the bed and turning away.   
Marissa was slightly shocked at his acquiescence, but relieved he got the message and didn’t push further. She noticed his crossed arms and inability to look back at her as she sat up. Her eyes looked for clues, curious why he seemed so upset.   
“Look… Frank… While I appreciate the offer, I am in a relationship… and I’m not really comfortable having sex with someone I just met.” She rubbed the back of her head, uncomfortable with the exchange.   
“We didn’t have to fuck. I was just offering to make you feel good. Obviously, I’m not good enough for you. I ain’t the good boy you’re in to.” He muttered, still refusing to look her way.   
She blinked at his words, confused yet curious what he meant. “Wait… Are you feeling insecure with my rejection? You think it’s because you’re not a “good boy”?”  
Frank grumbled, getting annoyed with the conversation. He shifted back and forth into place, before deciding to leave the situation altogether. He walked swiftly to the exit and left around the corner, eager to get outside and have a smoke. Her pleas to stop faded as he sped to the exit door and away from her.   
Marissa, meanwhile, got up quickly, leaving the ice on the stand as she grabbed the motel key and closed the door after her. She did her best to follow Frank, but as she turned the corner there was no trace of him. She shook her head and let out a long sigh.  
‘Come back Frank. This is ridiculous.’ She scanned the halls, not finding him anywhere until she saw a light turn on outside.   
She glanced out the window and saw Frank lighting a cigarette under the light post. The motion-sensor lights under the exit door had turned on when he left. Marissa sped down the stairs and down the hall until she found the same exit and saw Frank outside. She stopped in place, waiting in the small entryway between the hotel and the outside. She clenched her hands into fists, debating if she should approach him. She didn’t want to upset him and start another fight; she wasn’t sure how many free passes he would give her until he decided to end her life.   
Before she really made up her mind, her legs moved for her, walking her out to the lamp he stood under. Frank glanced over his shoulder, noticed she was approaching and took another deep breath. He let out the smoke purposely around his body, when she got close. Marissa frowned at this and swatted the smoke away, letting out a couple coughs.   
“Nice try Frank. That won’t keep me away.” She frowned at him.   
His expression turned dark, angry, but he avoided her gaze. She sighed and shook her head.   
“What are you doing here? Come here to brag about your perfect life?” He muttered, his voice dripping venom.   
Her eyes widened in anger and shock. “What does that mean? You think I’ve been bragging about my life?”  
“That’s all you ever talk about! That’s all you ever care about! Look. I get it. WE ain’t a part of your perfect world. You would never even associate yourself with us if you weren’t in this situation. You think you’re far better than us.” His anger was getting the best of him as he took a step towards her smaller form, becoming hostile.   
She stood her ground, feeling a rush of fear and stubbornness. “Maybe we wouldn’t have gotten along and been friends. Maybe you guys and I come from very different backgrounds. But I never, for one second, thought I was better than you. Maybe I had my life in order by society’s standards, but there’s a lot of shit that you guys are doing now that I could have never done. I could never survive this long on my own. I could have never gone against expectations and done spontaneous things like you. You guys dye your hair and get obvious tattoos without caring what others think of you! You do things because you want to, because you don’t give a shit about what others think. You’re… you’re all truly free… and you have the most dedicated group of friends I’ve ever met. Through thick and thin they follow you, they love you; even if you commit murder! It makes me realize how fake people can be and how they use weak people like me… I’m no more than an average girl, trying to fit in because I’m too afraid to stand out. To be myself and-“   
Frank wrapped his arms around her body, pulling her into a tight hug. Her eyes widened, unaware how close he had gotten and that he was listening to her rambling off her insecurities.   
“That’s enough…” He whispered, holding a hand to her head as he patted her back with the other. “You don’t need to cry over some stupid shit I said.”  
She was unaware that she had tears in her eyes, her emotions had gotten the better of her. Frank was holding her close, not letting her pull back even if she tried to struggle. Marissa just stood there, frozen in place as tears rolled down her cheeks. She couldn’t believe how much she had just told this man. Even her boyfriend wasn’t aware how fake she felt around others, how hard it was for her to connect with people. She was a people pleaser, trying to be friends with everyone, yet feeling lonely on the inside.   
Secretly, on the inside, she felt jealous of Frank and his friends. They really were a tight-knit group, there for each other at the drop of a hat. They didn’t care about each other’s faults or shortcomings. She had friends she would call close back home, and a caring boyfriend that was there for her, yet she knew they had more important things to care about than her. She had been doubting herself since puberty, realizing and focusing on all her faults and errors and feeling ashamed in them, hiding herself behind them. Instead of accepting her imperfections, she let them take over, whispering dark things in her head when she felt lowest, sinking her down further.   
“I’m sorry I stirred some bad shit up. It’s obvious you’re hurting too.” Frank mumbled, rubbing soft circles against her back, hearing her quiet sobs against his shoulder. “I… I didn’t think you was bragging… I was just… fucking jealous. You seem to have a great, straight-edge life… and I know that’d never be possible for someone like me. I’m way too far gone…”   
He felt tears want to form in his eyes, but he pushed them back, not wanting to be weak in front of her. After a moment, he pulled back and leaned down to look into her teary eyes. He forced a small smile at her, being sincere as he could be when he spoke.   
“I wished for the longest time to be like you Princess. To believe that there is good in the world, to believe that doing the right thing will pay off in the end… Those just weren’t realistic to me. Ain’t no good outside my group, yet here you are bringing light into our darkness. We ain’t used to the goodness. I sure as hell ain’t. So… I’m sorry for pulling you further into the darkness.”  
Marissa stared at him flabbergasted, her watery eyes overflowing at his real, genuine words. She grit her teeth before shaking her head and pulling Frank back into a hug. Frank stepped back a bit, stunned at her sudden affection. She sniffled against his chest, closing her eyes.  
“I’ve been lost in my own darkness, trying to find my way out… There’s nothing you could do to make that worse. It’s something I will struggle with my whole life.” She whispered hoarsely against him.   
Frank felt an overwhelming sadness at her words. He frowned and hugged her back, reality set in when he realized she had disclosed her hidden struggles to him. He held her back, gently.  
“In truth, you and your group have been a breath of much needed fresh air for me.” She smiled against his chest. “I know I may not show it, but thank you.”  
Frank only nodded, not pushing the topic further as they embraced each other. They both took a moment, not speaking, but still listening as they stood under the flickering, yellow light. The smell of smoke guided her gaze down to the ground. Frank’s barely used cigarette had fallen to the ground when he embraced her, the fire at the end dying out.   
“Frank… your cigarette…” She pulled back and stared at it on the ground.   
He followed her gaze and noticed that the end had gone out now. He shrugged and stepped on it, making sure it was fully out.   
“It doesn’t matter… Just a cigarette.” He said quietly, smiling a little at her.   
Still, she frowned at this. Her thoughts still cloudy from before. This was the second cigarette she he had wasted because of her. Oh.  
She reached behind her and pulled out the used cigarette from before. She and Frank looked down at the crushed, crumpled roll.   
“Your cigarette from before…” She whispered, frowning when she remembered falling on her bum during the encounter.   
Frank chuckled and shook his head. “Well it looks like I won’t be using it.”   
He noticed how solemn she was and rolled his eyes. He reached out and ruffled her hair, causing her to gasp. “It’s just a cigarette. Not like I actually pay for those anyway.”   
She shrugged and let out a sigh, still looking at the paper and plant.   
“You should keep it.” Frank stated, rolling her fingers around the small stick. “It’s given you luck so far.”  
She rolled her eyes at this, dismissing his comment, but still pocketed it anyway. Marissa looked at Frank, feeling guilty about their encounter from before. “Frank… I’m sorry about before. I didn’t mean to make you feel inferior or anything. You being a bad boy wasn’t the reason I rejected you. I just don’t feel right doing those things when I’m in a relationship with someone else. I know how painful cheating can be for everyone involved. I do believe my boyfriend hasn’t given up on me yet.”  
Frank looked at her, frowning a bit as he remembered the reason they got into this crying, self-doubt mess. He just shrugged and looked away, not sure what to do. Marissa noticed how quiet he had gotten, some pain still obvious in his eyes from rejection. She wasn’t sure if she should say what was on her mind or not. Truly, he had made her feel really good, excited even to take him up on his offer. It felt wrong, it felt like cheating, but she felt that she had to say it to make the youth feel better.   
“If you want me to be real with you then yes……..you were……turning me…on before…” Her face turned bright red again as she quietly admitted her body’s sin.   
Frank’s eyes immediately shot back at her, noticing her embarrassed face. His expression brightening when he realized he was affecting her like she was affecting him.   
“You’re serious? You’re not bullshitting me?” He asked her, wanting to watch her face to read her expression.   
She huffed annoyed and looked away. She crossed her arms anxiously, trying to cover herself as she felt exposed to him. “Please don’t make me say it again…” The brunette muttered annoyed.   
Frank felt a wave of relief wash over him. He had always felt inferior to other men. He wasn’t insecure about his looks or body, far from that, but more his status. He came from a variety of foster homes who couldn’t tolerate him, refused to properly raise him. Constant rejection hurt him over the years, and he began to bury his insecurities in dangerous activities, got involved with the wrong crowds. As soon as he could comprehend the situation, he knew he was doomed from the start. There was no future for him aside from working at a dead-end job, making little to nothing, and dying an early death. He had no financial support, no mental support, no emotional support.   
With Marissa, he felt something, something close to a support he had been lacking his whole life. If she didn’t care for them, then why would she save Susie? Why comfort her fearful state afterwards? Why open up to him about such sensitive things? She was clearly out of her comfort zone with all of them. Everything they did and said was so beyond her understanding, yet she stuck around. Obeyed them like the good girl she was. Maybe her matureness wasn’t so bad for this group of rapscallions.   
Marissa felt a pair of hands reach out and hold hers. She gasped at first, expecting dirty intentions before she realized how gentle he looked at her.   
“Thanks Princess… for being honest with me.” He finally spoke up, moving his head to look down at her. “I hope I didn’t come on to you too rough.”  
Marissa’s lips formed a small pout as she thought about their encounter. She shrugged and blushed a little. “It was a little much all of a sudden… but I’m really happy you backed off.”  
He nodded at her. “Fair enough. I’d definitely rather have you into it than force anything on ya… Well, if you ever change your mind, my offer has no expiration date. Hit me up whenever.” He let her go and stepped back, standing there casually.   
She turned to face him and shook her head. “Good to know I guess… I don’t think my mind will change though.”   
Frank shrugged at her, giving her a wink. “Just putting it out there, Princess.”  
She nodded at him, watching as he walked over to the door. “And IF ya ever change your mind and want to take things further…” He trailed off, pulling out a couple condoms from his pocket and smirking at her deviously.   
Her skin became white as a ghost, embarrassed at his bold offer. “You have condoms…” She could barely make out, too mortified.   
He nodded, shrugging cockily as he tossed her one of them. Her voice caught in her throat as she caught it.  
“God you’re unbelievable…” She muttered, looking at the Trojan brand “Extra pleasure” in her hands. “At least you’re using protection…”  
He smiled widely at this and burst out laughing. She jumped at his sudden laughter, confused at him.   
“Of course you would say that! You really do plan for anything and everything,” he smirked at her, leaning forward cockily, keeping his hand on the door handle. “Besides… We got a whole box from the gas station. There’s more and they’re not just for me to use.”  
She pouted at him and threw the rubber at him roughly, huffing upset. “Fuck off…”   
Frank caught the circle and pocketed it again, shrugging at her. “Gotta be prepared.” He tried saying in her serious tone.   
She simply shook her head and followed him through the door he held open for her. They headed back to their motel rooms quietly. When they returned, Frank cursed seeing the closed door. He felt around his pockets for the key but couldn’t find it. Marissa smirked a little and pulled the room key out of her pocket, waving it at him.  
“What was that about being prepared?”   
He grumbled, swiping the key from her and opening the door. He headed over to the table and grabbed the key to the other room. She followed in after him and stretched, yawning a bit.  
“I need to shower. Be a gentleman and leave so I can do so in private!” She hinted at him.   
Frank shrugged and walked past her, heading to the door. He purposely bumped his shoulder against hers. “Just remember my offer still stands.”  
He left her in the quiet room, closing the door behind him as he traveled across the hall. Marissa stood in the motel room, silent. Her thoughts were all over the place as she recounted her experiences today. She witnessed the group rob two places, almost got killed by a man she didn’t know, got advanced on by two of the kids, and poured her heart out to a killer.   
“What is my life?” She asked herself, heading to the shower to clean herself up before the others got back.   
She was sure after eating dinner, she would pass out in the bed, unable to take many more adventures today. Still… a small part of her being raced in excitement, hoping tomorrow would be just as unpredictable.


	6. Nightmare

Dark. Abandoned. Eerie. A lone figure found themselves waking up on the hard ground in this strange place. They groaned, letting out a long breath as they helped themselves into a sitting position. Confused, they looked around at the foreign scenery. They were outdoors, surrounded by some tall trees, grass covered with snow, and many wrecked wooden walls. Turning their head around to search the area, the figure noticed a large building in the distance. Flames flickered around the walls, lighting up the outside of the large edifice.   
‘Maybe there are people there.’ They thought, fully standing to get a better view of the area.   
Slowly, they started towards the building in the distance, looking around at the destroyed-looking environment. The area was riddled with walls, very few connecting with one another and sporadically placed around. The snowy land was dead silent aside from the crackling flames inside of barrels and the quick movement of crows landing on a perch. They stopped to look up at the dark birds, they felt a dark, ominous presence emitting from them as they seemed to survey the area.   
Tearing their gaze from the unsettling birds, they heard a noise come from the area the building was at. They trudged through the snowy grass, unaffected by the freezing substance. As they approached the edifice, they noticed it was also in shambles, parts of it missing. In the center of the resort was a fireplace and reception area. Stairs led up to the next floor, only lit by the pale moonlight. Now that they were closer to the building, they realized it had a ski lift attached to it. It remained frozen in place, unmoving from the lack of employees to operate it. Even in this large area, they saw no other people around, only hearing the noise of a rickety, old machine.   
The figure pushed on, deciding to follow the noise. A feeling of sudden demise washing over them as they continued through the ruined area. The whole place seemed “off” as they explored it further. The constant pitter patter of a machine became louder, faster as they turned the corner. There was a mid-sized machine in the shape of a box with moving parts and flickering lights above. The cylinders were thrusting slowly, in place, becoming louder and faster by the second. As they approached, they saw shadows moving behind the contraption. People. Two to be exact. One was an adult man with long brown hair and a beard, and another was a pale lanky man with black hair and glasses. They looked to be fixing the machine, focused on their work.   
Letting out a sigh of relief, they ran over towards the group, hoping to get some answers.   
“Finally I found someone. Hey! Can you guys help me-“ They were cut off mid-step as something rushed through them, literally.   
A young blonde-haired girl with braids jogged past the person, stopping at the machine and starting to work on it with them. The figure froze in place, startled at the sudden occurrence. How did she physically run through them? Were they dead?  
“Ah you’re back Meg. Were you able to evade the killer?” The man with glasses asked, looking around worriedly in the direction she ran from.   
“Of course! Otherwise I wouldn’t be here, Dwight.” She hissed at him annoyed, then looked at the man with a beard. “Why does that killer hate you so much?”   
The man with the beard frowned, looking away from her gaze as she waited for an answer. The man called Dwight listened in as well, hoping to hear answers.   
“I messed up real bad once… I think being stuck here is my penance for it…” He mumbled, going silent for a few moments after.   
Meg and Dwight looked at each other confused, not sure what to say or if they should push it further. Dwight swallowed heavily, the machine’s last cylinder just starting to move. He looked between the two and shivered.   
“What’s this new killer like anyway? I haven’t encountered them yet…I hope they’re easy to hide from.”  
The figure shuddered hearing this, their eyes widening. ‘Killer!? What’s going on here?!’ They listened to the conversation, wishing they could hear or see them.  
Meg rolled her eyes at the scared man. “Well she has a hunting knife and-”  
“He.” The brunette man corrected the girl who looked at him confused.   
“I thought it was a girl. They sounded like a girl.”   
“Well… You’re sort of right… It may have been a girl in that specific match, but there are different killers that can spawn in with the same weapon and abilities.”  
Dwight shuddered in fear, looking behind him worriedly as he listened to them explain the new “killer”.  
“Still… It seems there is a boy who’s the leader of the group. He’s the one that spawns most out of them. He usually seems to hunt us when I’m in a match...” The man explained, shaking his head.   
“What… can they do?” Dwight whispered, afraid to hear the answer.  
Meg kept her focus on the machine and explained, “They can actually sprint really fast and jump over pallets and through windows.”  
“What?!” Dwight shrieked, ignoring the machine for a second and causing sparks to fly.   
Everyone groaned and held up hands to block the sparks, getting back to work soon after.   
“Focus Dwight!” Meg scolded him as she pulled out a small toolbox now.   
“How am I supposed to focus knowing that?! That sounds terrifying! We have no safety barriers now! WE can’t run from THEM.” He started to panic, still working on the generator.   
“No, you can’t run from us.” A dark voice spoke out just as the generator lit up, full of new life.  
The trio and figure turned around, seeing a single silhouette standing a few meters away from them. The trio stood up, stunned at the killer’s words. The person was tall and thin, a hood covering their head and a white mask covering their face. Red marks stained the grinning mask that watched the group, pulling out a knife.   
The lone figure stared in shock and confusion, trying to understand the situation. Doubting at what they were watching before their eyes.   
‘What is this about a new killer? Who are these people? Is he going to kill them?’ They clenched their hands as adrenaline pumped through their veins from the dire situation.   
“Killers don’t normally speak!” Dwight proclaimed, biting his nails in fear and looking for an exit.  
Meg’s eyebrows furrowed in confusion and focus, glaring at the man. “We gotta go! Split up!” She cried and dashed for the building while the others ran off separately.   
Immediately, the “killer” dashed off after the man with long hair, knife raised and ready for stabbing. They huffed, breathing heavily as blood lust took over their body, following the man. The figure gasped as the killer dashed after the helpless man. They felt their heart race in fear that he would brutally kill this random man, without rhyme or reason. They dashed after the predator and prey, keeping up and trying to follow closely.  
The bearded man ran around walls, tossed a pallet or two down, but nothing stopped the murderer. He sped after the man, almost flying off the ground, as he inched closer and swung his raised knife.   
“How many times do I gotta kill you before you stay dead!?” The masked killer yelled in anger at the helpless man.  
“No! Don’t do it!” The outsider yelled as he was hit, running forward after hurdling the window. He was injured but could still move.   
Shortly after the hit, the killer cried out in pain, bringing his knife towards his mask. After a few moments, he regained his bloodlust and chased the man who got a little distance on him. He followed the man through the windows and pallets, nothing seemed to stop him. The outsider watched their trajectory and noticed an open wall ahead, they ran towards it and jumped through, cutting off some distance as the two ran towards them. They watched them approach and sprinted as they got close. They jumped between the prey and predator who was close behind. They held out their arms outstretched, trying to protect the man and act as a barrier as an arm raised up, ready to stab.   
“Stop it Frank!” They cried, just before the knife came down.   
Time seemed to slow for them as they watched the knife come down without hesitation. One fluid movement as it swung through the air and passed through their chest connecting a hit with the man whimpering in pain behind them. The person’s eyes widened in fear as they looked down at the knife through their body-*SPLASH*  
Marissa jumped, jolting awake as cold water suddenly splashed on her face. She coughed a bit, some water slipping down her throat and catching her off guard. She closed her eyes in protection, holding her hands up to shield her face in case another round of water was coming her way. She heard giggling around her and grumbled, sitting up and wiping her face. After a moment to gather herself, she saw Susie with an empty cup and Julie behind her, both of them laughing at her confused form.   
“Susie?! What was that for?” She whined, using the motel blanket to wipe herself off.   
Susie chuckled, bringing a covered hand to her face to hold back laughter. She looked back at Julie and shrugged. “Well you were taking FOREVER to wake up… so Julie had an idea to prank you by splashing water on your face! It’s funny!”   
Marissa held the towel to her face, frowning as she looked from Susie to Julie. Julie smirked in the background, crossing her arms and leaning against the wall, delighted at what she was seeing. The brunette pouted, drying off her hair. ‘Of course it was her idea… Looks like she’s still not a fan of me…’ “Well I’m awake now, so what do you need?”   
Susie cocked a brow at Marissa, noticing her upset expression and frowned. ‘She didn’t find that very funny… She really is so serious.’ “Well… You didn’t have any supper last night. We got back with the food and you had already passed out on the bed. I was worried you were really hungry…” Susie’s tone turned sad, feeling guilty for pranking her friend.   
Marissa heard this and looked around, seeing the clock said 10:21AM. Her eyes widened in shock, surprised it was already late morning of the next day. She glanced back at Susie and Julie who watched her piece things together.   
“Oh wow. I didn’t realize I had slept for so long…” Marissa noticed Susie’s guilty expression and sighed. She looked down and held her stomach. “I guess I am really hungry. Do you have any food left over?”  
The pinkette nodded and quickly got up, she walked to the mini fridge and looked through its contents. “We have some cold pizza and hot dogs left.”  
“I’ll go with the pizza.” She answered the girl who nodded, grabbing a plate and placing the couple pieces on it for her friend.   
Susie walked back to Marissa and held the plate close to her. Marissa looked up at Susie confused who avoided eye contact with her. “…I’m sorry about the water… I won’t do it again… Don’t be mad?”  
Marissa let out a sigh at this, shaking her head and smiling at Susie. “It’s alright. Thank you for waking me. I was having a scary dream anyway.”   
Susie and Julie both perked up at this, watching the brunette curiously.  
“What was your dream about?” Susie asked, sitting down besides Marissa on the bed and giving her the paper plate of food.   
Marissa happily took the food, eating the sloppy slice and shrugging. She stared off a bit in thought, remembering the abandoned facility, the random people working on a generator and Frank killing that man. She frowned a bit, unhappy with the dream. Marissa was torn by her thoughts when she noticed Susie’s concerned face stare at her. She forced a smile and shook her head.   
“It was just a dream about a scary place. I was lost and trying to find help. It’s not a big deal. Just happy that the dream is over.” She chose her words carefully, not wanting to explain further and upset the girls. “I’m happy you woke me from it.”  
Susie smiled a little at this, flashing her braces for a brief moment. Her worried expression left as she nodded happy that Marissa wasn’t upset. Julie watched Marissa talk to Susie and rolled her eyes, her smirk had fallen and been replaced with a scowl of annoyance. Susie was focused on Marissa, making small talk as Marissa ate. Julie felt a sting of hatred and jealousy run through her body at this. Susie was her friend, and here she was apologizing for hazing the new girl and ignoring Julie. She couldn’t stand all this attention that Marissa was getting from their tight-knit group. Worst of all, she felt hopeless to stop it.   
She shook her head and left for the door, pulling out a pack of cigarettes from her pocket to soothe her anger. As she opened the door, she was greeted by Joey and Frank’s presence on the other side. Frank had his hand lifted in midair, about to knock on the door.   
“Wow. Great timing Jules.” Frank smiled at her and lowered his hand, looking past her into the room at the other girls. “We were just coming over to check on Marissa and see how she was doing.”  
Julie’s face turned angry, she puffed her cheeks a bit and pouted. She glared back at Marissa who looked back at the group. “Well she’s obviously fine. I’m gonna have a smoke.” She huffed and stormed past the boys.   
Marissa frowned at this, shaking her head in exhaustion. ‘Yesterday she seemed to care about me… I guess I must have messed up again.’  
Susie frowned when she noticed Julie storm off. She felt her friend’s anger and pain and got up from the bed. “I’m going too.” She stated simply, pulling out her pack of cigarettes and trying to follow her friend.  
The boys looked at each other confused and shrugged, glancing back to Marissa who sat on the end of the bed, quietly eating, a towel over her shoulders to catch the remaining liquid.   
“Did you just take a shower, or did I miss my chance to catch the princess out in the rain?” Frank quipped, smirking at her as he and Joey stepped into the room.   
Marissa shook her head, rolling her eyes. “Very funny. No. Susie and Julie decided I was sleeping for too long and woke me up with a glass of water.”  
Frank and Joey chuckled to themselves, Frank sitting beside her and Joey leaning against the dresser in front of her.   
“That sounds like something they would do. I know I’ve done something like that with whipped cream to Joey.” Frank smirked and looked over at his friend who shook his head in annoyance.   
“You got lucky with that one.”   
Marissa sat there awkwardly, scratching the back of her head. “Sounds like you guys like to mess with each other frequently…”  
Frank shrugged, looking back at her and smiling playfully. “It can be really fun. At least no one’s getting hurt from it.” He smirked, hinting at her with his words.   
Marissa shuddered a little at this, her previous dream resurfacing as she thought about Frank’s words. Her change in expression was so sudden that Frank’s smile fell into a frown.   
“What?” He asked her, searching her scared face for answers.   
Marissa shook her head a bit, her fear disappearing when she realized the guys were staring at her confused.   
“N-Nothing. Sorry I just… I’m still reeling after what happened last night…” She came up with an excuse, looking away from their stares.   
Frank still frowned at her, not convinced with her answer. Meanwhile, Joey nodded at this, crossing his arms over his chest. “Can’t blame ya. I’m sure you’ve never experienced something like that before. That was some risky shit you pulled.”  
Marissa rubbed the back of her head uncomfortably, thinking about the previous night. She really did put herself in a life or death situation. Her logic and rationality out the window as her instincts took over her mind. Someday she may not be as lucky, and it could cost her more than a sore head and neck.   
Frank studied her face, looking at her worried expression that was lost deep in thought. His empathy began to trigger from her overwhelming worry and stress. He shook his head, pushing these feelings aside as he put an arm around her slumped shoulders. Marissa immediately broke from her thoughts and looked over to Frank suspiciously.   
“That’s why Joey and I was talking and decided to give ya something.” Frank explained, squeezing her shoulders a bit before holding out a hand towards Joey.   
Joey nodded and reached into his hoodie, a moment later he pulled out a knife and handed it to Frank.  
“My old hunting knife.” Joey explained to her.  
Marissa’s eyes widened in fear, following the knife as it passed between hands and made it in front of her face. Frank watched her reaction, holding out the handle of the knife for her to grab. Still, she was frozen in place, her stares not breaking from the weapon that had various blood stains and indents on it.   
Frank rolled his eyes, moving his arm off her shoulder so he could grab her hand. “Ya gonna take it sometime in this life or what?” He led her hand towards the knife, folding her fingers over the hilt of the blade so she held it.   
Marissa’s hand shook as his grasp stayed over hers, keeping it around the handle. Holding the old blade sent chills down her spine. How many times had this blade hurt or killed someone? She had seen at least two kills by this specific weapon. Her face paled as she stared down the blade, not saying a single word.  
Frank pouted at her expression and reaction. He let out a grumble and squeezed her fingers around the blade tightly. “You sure have an interesting way of thanking someone for a gift…”  
She shot her gaze over to Frank and immediately frowned, upset. “I don’t want a knife!”  
“Why not?” Frank asked back, a brow raising in confusion.   
She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. There were so many things wrong with his logic. “Why not?! Well, how about the fact that you’re giving a random girl you’re holding hostage a weapon! Plus, I could never use this! I can’t kill anyone!”  
Frank grunted, nodding in agreement as he put his other hand in his pocket, quickly pulling out his knife and pointing it towards her neck. Marissa jumped, her eyes widening in fear as she tried to move back. Her grasp let go of the knife as she attempted to move herself back on the bed. The plate that rested on her lap fell to the ground, the knife would have followed suit if it weren’t for Frank holding it in her grasp. Frank’s arm still wrapped around her, keeping her in place. He chuckled and moved the blade playfully around her face. He trailed the blade down her neck and stared into her scared blue eyes.   
“That’s exactly why we’re giving it to you.” Frank chuckled and pulled the knife back from her throat, pocketing it away. “Anyone else in your shoes would have used the knife we just gave you to fight back. Yet you chose flight not fight.”   
Marissa swallowed heavily, her eyes looking from Frank to Joey who watched quietly. She took in deep breaths as she slowly calmed down. Frank loosened his grip around her hands and took the knife from her.   
“Since you’re stuck with us for a while now… You better have a means to protect yourself, You’re very danger-prone, ya know.” Frank continued fiddling with Joey’s knife in his hand, doing a quick flip.   
Joey nodded in agreement. “You might as well take it. I broke into a weapon shop last night and got a new, better one. I was gonna to throw the old one away then Frank had the idea to give it to you. Considering you saved Susie last night, I trust you with it.”  
Marissa was stunned by his words, looking over at the knife Frank was flipping in the air. He noticed her look over at him and held out the knife handle to her again, waiting for her to take it. She felt her whole body become unsettled at the look of it.   
“I… I don’t even know how to use it…” She murmured, still not taking it.   
Frank shook his head, smirking at her cockily. “What? A princess can’t use a knife? You point it at someone… and stab them with the pointy end.”  
“No! That’s not what I meant Frank!” The brunette grumbled and pouted at him.   
Frank shrugged at her, leaning back on one arm and still holding the knife hilt towards her. “I can give you some one-on-one training if you like~.”  
She stuck her tongue out at him, finally taking the knife from Frank. “No way! I guess I’ll take it since you guys really want me to, but I’m not going to use it.”   
“You never know… That knife could mean the difference between life and death.” Frank muttered, watching her observe the knife.  
The brunette stared at the knife she held in her two hands, thinking about Frank’s words. Carefully, she moved the hilt to one hand and clicked the button to retract the knife back. She was about to pocket it in her shorts when Joey spoke up.   
“You’re not gonna try it out?”   
She looked at him, dumbfounded at his question. “What would I try it on?”  
Frank chuckled and stood up from the bed, standing before her. “We can set up some things to have you practice on. I can teach you how to throw it with accuracy.”   
He held out a hand towards her, a smug smirk on his face when he realized she was considering it. “Come on Princess. Learn somethin’ new?”   
Marissa’s blue eyes met with his dark brown ones. She felt a spark of excitement ignite within her at his offer. Back home, she never used a knife as a weapon aside from cooking food. She never got to hold a real gun or weapon designed to hunt and kill. Once, she had a freak encounter with a raccoon in her backyard that made her wish she knew how to use something to protect her. Luckily, she had neighbors that hunted and helped her that night. Aside from that, she had no need to use a weapon. This was her chance to learn something new, something thrilling without anyone judging or questioning her about it.   
“Okay… Help me learn how to throw it.” She decided speaking softly and taking Frank’s hand.   
Frank’s face lit up with delight. He smirked happily, helping her up and guiding her out of the room. He called for Joey to grab the key as he led Marissa to the parking lot, dragging her along excitedly. She grunted as Frank held her hand tightly, guiding her towards the truck. Joey followed close behind, putting away the key. The guys stopped at the truck, grabbing a bag of trash they had in the back. The trio left for the woods around the motel, leaving the area just enough so they were out of sight. The atmosphere was humid and dark. Clouds littered the sky above, covering up the sun that tried to peek through. The wind began to pick up a little as they entered the woods and moved through the trees. When they found a lower area out of the wind, they stopped.   
Frank let go of Marissa’s hand and took the garbage bag from Joey. He instructed her to stay back as he riffled through the bag, pulling out some plastic bottles and energy drinks.   
“I promise we ain’t littering this time.” He smirked back at the girl smugly.   
Marissa huffed and crossed her hands over her chest, watching him set up around 10 bottles at various heights on the ground, trees and rocks. Marissa watched as Frank climbed the tree with ease, pulling himself up the branch quickly. She couldn’t help but notice how fit he was. Frank climbed up a few more branches before sitting on one. He scooted towards the middle and let himself hang down from his strong legs, placing a bottle below him on the edge of the branch. His hoodie and shirt slid down his body, exposing his well-toned muscles. Marissa’s face reddened a bit at this, trying not to stare. Frank noticed she was looking at his body and smirked, giving her a wink when her gaze met his. She huffed at this and looked away, crossing her arms upset. “Show off…” She muttered to herself.   
Frank chuckled to himself as he sat back up. Slowly and carefully, he made his way back down to the leafy ground below without upsetting a bottle. Frank walked back to them, stopping beside Marissa. He gently pulled her body back a bit.   
“Let Joey practice first with his new knife. He can show you the throwing technique he uses.”  
Joey nodded and quietly stepped in front of the target bottle. He eyes narrowed, focusing on the target as he leaned back, raising his arm. In a quick motion, he threw the blade, hitting its target. The bottle clunked as it fell from the tree branch to the ground below. Marissa’s eyes widened in surprise and awe.   
“Wow. Nice hit.” She applauded him with a couple claps.   
Joey simply shrugged, smiling to himself as he walked over to collect his knife. “I’ve had a lotta practice.”   
Frank looked down at brunette and nudged her a bit in the side. “Your turn Princess.”  
Marissa looked at the bottles and picked one sitting on a rock. She lined herself before it and pulled out her knife. She pressed the button to release the blade and flinched a bit as it came out. She let out a sigh to relax a bit.   
‘It’s not a person. Just a bottle. Focus.’ She thought and eyed up the bottle, tucking her long hair behind her ear.   
Joey got out of the way and watched her silently. After a few moments, she threw the knife like a baseball, completely going over her target. Marissa’s face flushed in embarrassment as the knife flew into a tree, sticking to the bark. Frank smiled at this, walking over to the girl who was still frozen in her throwing stance.   
“Well, no one’s ever a pro when they first try something.” He stood beside her and looked for the knife.   
He whistled in surprise when he saw the blade stuck in a tree in the distance. “You got an arm on ya, Princess.”   
Marissa looked over at Frank and let out a small sigh. “Well I used to play outfield in softball, but that was forever ago…”  
“Hmm…” He thought, holding a hand to his chin. “I think we can make this work. Ya just need to work on your aim. Let’s go get your knife back.”  
Frank walked on ahead with Marissa following closely after. Joey walked over to some bottles further away and practiced throwing his knife, sure that the two were out of harm’s way. Marissa looked back at Joey in awe as he hit another bottle. Frank glanced over his shoulder and noticed her staring at Joey.   
“If knife throws are what it takes to catch your eye then I’m in luck.”  
Marissa pouted at him, looking back at Frank and shaking her head. “I’m just shocked that you guys are so good at throwing knives. How long did it take to do that so well?”  
Frank shrugged, keeping his hands in his pockets as he walked. “It’s different for everyone. Depends if you have experience with the knife or not.”  
“Experience with the knife?”  
“Yeah.” He nodded and looked back at her casually. “It’s not just about having a good arm. You need to feel the knife’s weight. Get used to the hilt and how smooth it leaves your hand. You need control over it.”  
The brunette looked at the boy, genuinely surprised at his wisdom. “Wow. I never thought of those things. Looks like there is a lot of thought and skill involved.” She concluded as they stopped before her knife.   
Frank nodded and reached out, grabbing the knife that was stuck in the tree. He pulled it out after a moment’s try and offered it back to her.   
“It takes practice is all and I’m more than willing to teach~” He cooed at her, his eyes smiling when her hand touched his while reaching for the blade.   
She was quiet as she grabbed the knife, holding it in her hand tightly. She grasped the hilt firmly and moved the blade around, feeling for the weight. Frank watched her try out his advice, smiling that she was listening to him.   
“This is where you guys have been!” Susie’s sudden shout reached the group as Julie and her approached Joey.  
Julie and Susie stopped besides Joey and looked at the two in the distance. Julie glared when she saw Frank standing close to Marissa, alone. Susie waved at the two, beaming when she saw the bottles around the area.   
“You guys target practicing?” She asked, pulling out her knife excitedly.   
“Yep! We figured we had some free time, so why not set up some bottles to practice on?” Joey explained as he walked away to retrieve his knife.   
“Sweet! I’m in. Marissa! Come here and watch me throw!” Susie called for the brunette girl.   
Frank smiled smugly, glancing down at Marissa who rubbed the back of her head embarrassed.   
“Oh-okay Susie. I’m heading over.” She called and strode off towards the pinkette.   
Frank followed behind the girl, humming contently as they walked back. Suddenly, a couple of cold drops fell on the duo’s heads. They stopped and looked above them just to see the sky begin to rain down heavily. The group all groaned and covered their heads with their hoods. Marissa held her arms over her head to shield herself until the rain stopped. She opened her eyes curiously and saw Frank holding his hoodie over her head for her. Marissa watched him cover her, grateful for the help.  
“Thank you Frank… You really don’t have to-“  
“Well I’m already doing it so it’s too late to stop. Come on! Let’s get inside!” He held a hand to her back and forced her to keep walking as he held up the jacket for protection.  
Frank’s hair was soaked already from the heavy rain as the two briskly ran towards the motel. The other three had ran off ahead of them, already at the entrance. Marissa could hear Susie crying out annoyed at the rain messing up her hair. She couldn’t help but chuckle at this as the two followed the group inside.   
Joey, Susie and Julie had taken off their soaked jackets in the waiting area of the motel. They tried wringing out the excess water the best they could as the remaining two entered. Julie’s annoyed expression quickly turned into envy when she saw Frank covering Marissa with his jacket. She cursed the brunette girl under her breath and turned away, refusing to look at the pair anymore.  
Marissa’s hair wasn’t as wet as Frank’s, but still enough to get tangled from the moisture. She looked over at her comrade who started squeezing out his jacket when they got out of the rain. She smiled sweetly at him. “Thanks for the assist.”   
Frank’s annoyed frown morphed into a small smile as he nodded at her. “ ’Course Princess. Does shielding you from the rain earn me a kiss?”   
“Don’t push your luck.” Her smile turned into a frown of annoyance.   
Frank chuckled at her response, winking at her. “Oh right. Not in public. Later then.”  
He walked past her, smirking at her exasperated expression at his words. ‘What a riot.’ “Let’s go back to our rooms for a bit until the storm passes. We’re leaving after.”  
The group followed after Frank towards the rooms. Julie looked back at Marissa at the end of the group and grit her teeth in anger. She slowed down and, soon, was beside the brunette.   
“I hope you don’t think Frank actually cares about you.” She stated bitterly.   
Marissa flinched at this, stunned by her harsh words. She was quiet as she listened to Julie continue.   
“Don’t get your hopes up. He only wants you for the sex. Then he’ll leave you for dead and find someone else.” Julie gave her a small dark smile, looking down at her condescendingly.   
Marissa frowned, looking away from her sneer. She bit her lip, not wanting to say anything mean.   
“I hope I’ve made myself clear.” Julie stated sternly, glaring at Marissa who pouted and nodded slowly. “Good.”  
Julie walked ahead towards Frank and left Marissa to her thoughts.   
‘What a ray of sunshine she is.’ She thought to herself, deciding to stay in the back of the group for a while. ‘It’s obvious she likes Frank a lot.’  
As she got to the rooms, she avoided Frank’s gaze and headed in the opposite room he and Julie were in. Frank raised a brow at her avoiding his looks at her. He watched her go inside the other room and stop at the table in the corner. Marissa froze in place, looking at the small table that was littered with papers. Curious, she reached over and collected the papers, reading them for a short while.   
‘What kind of notes are these? “The entity reaches out into the hearts of susceptible victims and corrupts them into performing hideous acts of violence…” ’ She pondered, reading the gruesome notes further. ‘ “The Entity builds a reflection of the real world in its construct to confuse the survivors.” What?’  
“Those notes are from that old bastard. Tried reading them but they make no sense.” Frank was suddenly behind Marissa, looking over her shoulder at the papers.   
She shrieked a bit, jumping in place at his sudden presence. “D-Don’t scare me like that!”  
Frank chuckled and looked down at the table she was standing alongside. “And here I thought you were eyeing up the money on the table. Not these bogus notes. You’re an odd one.”   
Marissa raised a brow at him confused before seeing the wads of cash under the lamp. She hadn’t even noticed. Her eyes were immediately drawn towards the dark sketches on the pages and the scribbled writing.  
“Do you care if I read these? I’m really curious about what that man was on about.” Blue eyes returned back to the old pages.   
Frank shrugged at her, a brow raised in confusion. “Why? They’re just crazy fantasies from that senile bag.”  
Marissa looked up at him sternly, a pleading look in her eyes. Frank rubbed the back of his head and sighed. “I know what that stubborn look means. Fine... I mean, if you really want to I won’t stop ya.”   
She nodded and thanked him, looking back at the notes to continue reading them. Her eyes met Julie’s envious ones, a glare etched on her face. Marissa frowned at this and looked back at Frank.   
“Um… If you don’t mind… I’m gonna read these in private so I can focus.”  
Frank frowned at this, upset she wanted him to leave. He was about to ask her why when Joey opened the curtains and called to the group. “Rain’s stopped already! Must have been a quick downpour. Maybe we should get going before the next one comes, huh Frank?”   
Frank glanced outside and saw the sun start to peek through the dark clouds. He nodded and elbowed Marissa in the side. She grunted, rubbing her ribs, as he reached over and grabbed the money from the table.   
“Looks like you’ll have to read them on the road. We’re heading out.” He stated, walking away.   
The brunette let out a sigh of disappointment, but acquiesced, following the group towards the truck. Joey returned the motel keys at the front while the rest of them left for the truck. Susie heard the papers crackling in the wind and raised a brow at Marissa.   
“You’re bringing those weird papers with you?”  
Marissa nodded, looking down at them. “Yeah... I read them a little bit and now I’m curious.”  
“If you can make heads or tails of those scribbles let me know. I tried to read them and gave up. The words just seemed like nonsense.” The pinkette frowned as she looked at the papers in Marissa’s hands.   
Marissa smiled at Susie and nodded determinedly. “I think I can decipher the words. I’ll let you know what I find out from them.”  
Susie returned her a smile and nodded, heading to the back of the truck and hopping in. Thankfully, most of the truck was parked under a large tree that covered the back from filling up with water. Julie got in the truck, sitting in the middle seat while Marissa got the other end of the bench. The brunette folded all the papers but one and rested them on her lap, starting to read. Julie glanced over at her and rolled her eyes irritated.   
“Really? Are you that much of a nerd that you’re going to read that crap?” She asked, looking at the notes.   
“Yes. I believe I can decipher the notes and read what that man wrote so much about. There’s a lot of content here so it must be important.”  
“Whatever freak…” Julie muttered and looked away, the cabin becoming silent until Frank hopped in the driver’s seat.   
“Looks like Joey and Susie are ready in the back. Let’s head out.” He told the ladies, looking over his shoulder as he began to back up the truck.   
Frank got a nod from everyone and drove towards the exit. As he drove through the lot, his gaze caught that street corner he and Marissa had a moment at. Instead of frowning at the bad feelings, he smiled at the memory of them bonding. Frank never really felt sentimental about things; growing up in various foster homes prevented that from happening much with him. Yet the memories associated with that corner and this motel were a mixture of excitement, anger, and freedom, something that he rarely felt with a place before. He was sure he wouldn’t mind coming back here again to relive all the feelings and moments he had. Frank felt his heart flip in excitement at the thought of the future and making new memories with his friends.   
The truck lurched a bit as it drove on the bumpy highway, away from the town. The kids in the back held on to the bags of stolen items so they wouldn’t fly out. The bags fluttered in the wind and the items clanked in the back from hitting each other. The noise tore Marissa from her reading. She looked up from her papers and frowned annoyed, staring straight ahead through the glass.   
“Frank.” She said blankly.   
He and Julie both glanced over at her curiously. She continued to stare out the window silently, a frown still on her, now, serious face.   
“No one picked up those plastic bottles, did they?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer-The notes that were read I pulled from the Wiki page about the Entity-not my own words.
> 
> Anyway... Gosh it feels like forever since I wrote and posted something. Moving can be annoying like that... The good news is that I have most of the story planned out. The bad news is that I had major writer's block for this chapter and was rushing to get it done. I apologize if this isn't the greatest chapter because of that. =.=' Next chapter shouldn't be too bad I hope. 
> 
> Finally, thank you to everyone who left a kudos, comment, or bookmarked this story! Your support gave me the motivation to finish this chapter and keep writing. I appreciate it and hope to update soon! :)


	7. Jealousy is a Bitch

“Okay… what the actual hell are we doing here?”   
The quintet was gathered around each other in the bright moonlight, walking towards an archway. The archway was made of rusty steel that connected to brick walls which circled around the large area. Around the walls were patches of long grass and weeds that started to spread over the bumpy gravel path. Looking into the distance, large objects were seen standing high over the brick enclosure, their shape silhouetted from the moon overhead. The tallest edifice was in the shape of a tall, thin wheel; it stood, titled to one side, beside a tall, winding rail that covered most of the area even though it was broken in pieces. Aside from those two structures, there were various smaller ones around the area with a building in the center; the loose tarp on top fluttered loudly in the wind that blew through the lonely, dilapidated area.   
Marissa stared in disbelief and increasing fear at the abandoned park before her. The group had been driving for days, it seemed, and suddenly decided to drive off the road and stop here. The teens left their masks in the truck and forced the brunette from her reading to accompany them in exploring the area.   
Julie raised a brow at the girl, smirking smugly at her. “What? Scared of an abandoned amusement park?”  
Marissa felt a shiver immediately shoot down her spine at this. The cool wind that blew her long tresses around worsened her uneasy feelings. The young adults looked back at her and laughed at her fear. Frank chuckled and stood beside her, resting an arm over her shoulders. Marissa frowned over at the young man as he pulled her beside him.   
“We’re just gonna look around for a bit and see if we can take anything valuable that people left behind. If you’re so worried, then I can protect you while we explore, Princess~” He cooed in her ear.   
Marissa shuddered at his breath that tickled her ear. She cursed under her breath and shoved him away from her. She shook her head and crossed her arms over her chest. “Yeah right! I think I’ll be fine…”  
Blue anxious eyes met green angry ones, the ladies locked their gazes on one another, their looks communicating more than words could. Julie’s words from before reverberated in Marissa’s head; she took an extra step away from Frank and stared at the ghost town of a park.   
“How did you guys even find this place?”   
Susie’s face lit up in excitement at this and she sped over to Marissa, catching her off guard with her bubbly attitude. “It’s one of Canada’s most haunted places! There were a bunch of accidents just after it opened, and people spread rumors that it was cursed. I guess it didn’t last more than a couple years before people just gave up and tried to sell the land. People tried to rebuild on the land but the some of the workers died in the process and they gave up on the place, letting nature take it over!”   
Marissa’s brows furrowed in confusion and shock at this. “Wait wait wait! We’re in Canada?!”  
Susie and Joey just nodded at her, confusion on their faces as if their location was obvious. The brunette stared at them, flabbergasted. She had no idea that she had somehow crossed the border from America.   
“When… did we get in Canada? I thought we were still in America?” She asked the group of kids, hoping for a good explanation.   
Frank just shrugged at her, not caring too much about her concerns. “I dunno. Most of the time you’ve been with us I guess.”  
“WHAT?!”  
“Why is that such a big deal. These parts aren’t THAT much different from America. Get over it.” Julie grumbled annoyed, walking past her and towards the archways.  
Frank smiled at Julie and nodded. “Looks like she’s itchin’ to explore! Let’s go!”   
“But what about your masks? Don’t you want them?”  
“It’s an abonaded amusement park. Why would we need our masks?” Joey chuckled at the girl who grumbled a bit.   
“No more questions! Only fun!”  
Frank felt himself get excited at the thought of exploring the large amusement park, not a soul around to interrupt them. He had always liked the idea of visiting a bunch of new places and making memories with his friends, this place would be no exception. His adventurous side took over and he sped towards the three waiting around.   
“Let’s go! Maybe we’ll see a ghost!” He exclaimed, hooking an arm around the brunette’s waist who protested as she was dragged towards the entrance.   
Marissa jumped a bit when she felt a hand reach over and sneakily grope her right breast. Her eyes widened and her face lit up bright red from the squeeze. She glared over at Frank who glanced in her direction cockily, a smug look on his devious face. She grit her teeth and elbowed him in the side, getting Frank off her.   
Frank grumbled as he held his side, “Hey! What was that for, Princess?”  
“You’re smart. I think you can figure it out.” Marissa muttered and walked ahead of him a bit to look around at the dark dilapidated rides.   
Frank mumbled to himself, muttering something about it still being worth it. Joey and Susie followed the two close behind. Susie saw Marissa standing alone and took this chance to ran ahead and stand beside her.   
“Wanna look around together?” Susie asked the girl with hope.   
Marissa glanced back at Frank who raised a brow at her, smiling when she looked back at him. Immediately, she frowned and looked back to Susie.   
“Sure. Where do you want to go?”   
Susie flashed an excited smile at her, showing off her braces. The pinkette reached over and grabbed Marissa by the hand, leading her on ahead and leaving the boys behind. Joey stepped beside Frank who had a pout on his face.   
“Ah, come on Frank. Let Susie have some time with her, and we can explore together.”  
Frank grumbled something incoherent but acquiesced and started walking ahead. Joey chuckled to himself but stayed beside Frank as he let him take the lead. “You really like her huh?”   
Frank glanced over at his friend, playing the innocent game until Joey shook his head.   
“Come on. We’ve all seen how you act around her, how you talk to her. I mean the nickname “Princess” is a bit too obvious.”   
“I just call her that cuz I don’t know her real name.” Frank looked away, trying to avoid Joey’s smug stares.   
“What?” Joey was taken back a bit at this and he chuckled at Frank. “Yea right, you know her name.”   
Still, Frank shook his head at Joey, not saying anything as they continued to walk around. Joey’s chuckles faded until he realized Frank was being serious.   
“You’re not fucking with me? You’re telling me that these past five days she’s been with us, you never asked her what her real name is? The rest of us know her name.”  
“Jeez, it sounds shitty when you say it like that! “Princess” has worked fine for me up until this point! I don’t care what her name is anyway…” Frank was getting annoyed at Joey’s judging questions, feeling a little guilty when he heard it aloud.   
Joey’s dark eyes looked at his friend’s upset face, seeing that he felt annoyed at their current conversation. “Well I can tell you her name if you want.”   
Frank’s eyes light up with eagerness for a brief second before masking it. Still, Joey was quick and noticed his change in expression before he could hide it and chuckled. Frank shrugged it off, trying to act tough and like he didn’t care.   
“The girl you felt up before… her real name is Marissa. You may have a better chance being with her if you call her that instead of “Princess”. I think she would like it more to be treated like a person instead of a princess.” He whispered, smirking to himself as he walked past his friend to look in an abandoned booth.   
Frank’s face blushed at his knowing words. If he wasn’t so flustered he would have tackled Joey to the ground in anger, proving he wasn’t a pushover. He pulled his hands out of his pockets and looked down at them. They were scarred, calloused, nothing like Marissa’s. He relished the chance when he was able to hold her dainty hands in his rough ones. Frank stopped and looked over at a stall that had some stuffed animals hanging from the roof. His eyes caught the attention of a tattered dragon that hung from a string. He felt a frown tug at his face.   
‘I feel like the dragon in her fairy tale.’ His thoughts were starting to bring him down until his attention stopped on his friend up ahead.   
Frank paused, taking a moment to really consider his words. Joey was right, Marissa wasn’t a princess, she was just a normal girl like Julie and Susie. She was mature and down-to-earth; it was obvious she didn’t like the nickname, but he truly saw her as a princess. She was something so delicate and pure, a fantasy he wasn’t capable of attaining. Maybe his own words were a reflection of his insecurities around her, keeping her away from him, locked away in a tall tower instead of being down-to-earth, beside him.   
Frank was torn from his thoughts when some fingers snapped a few times in front of his face. Frank flinched a bit, taking a step back as Joey looked at him concerned.   
“You ok? I didn’t mean to upset ya before…”  
Frank looked at his friend’s worried expression and shook his head, letting a small smile form on his face. “Naw it’s no big deal.”  
He placed his hands in his jacket pockets and walked on ahead. Joey’s gaze followed his friend until he walked beside him to keep up. “You sure?”  
“Yeah. I’ll kick your ass for it later.” Frank looked over his shoulder and smirked at the taller man.   
Joey immediately chuckled back at Frank, shaking his head. “You wish pretty boy. Come on, let’s go look around.”  
…………………………………………………………  
Meanwhile Susie and Marissa had walked into a new area on their own, not exploring much but talking instead.   
“Frank really likes you ya know…” Susie’s upbeat aura changed into a saddened one as she muttered.   
Marissa looked over at the young girl, curious. Frank really didn’t seem to care about hitting on her in public; his words and affections seemed unperturbed in front of others. She knew that the others had to be catching on, Julie especially hated the PDA.   
“I-uh-I well…” Marissa stammered, not sure what exactly to say. Her free hand came up and rubbed the back of her head awkwardly. “I promise I’m not trying to pull anything on him. Frank is really stubborn even though I’ve told him I’m not inter-“  
“I know.” The pinkette stated, still not looking over at the brunette. “Frank can be very persistent when he wants something. He’s very bold and outgoing about it too…”   
Susie’s words made Marissa felt uncomfortable; the implication was that she was something he wanted to obtain, an object. At times she felt that was all she was to him, others, he showed her a softer side of him and they would bond over it. Her emotions and feelings were on a roller coaster when she was with him, sometimes wishing for stability and others letting go and enjoying the ride. She was never sure what to think about him.   
“It makes me jealous…” Susie spoke up, stopping in place and looking down at her boots. “I… I know you are a really kind person and stuff, but it’s obvious you feel uncomfortable around me when I hit on you. I can tell you’re not into girls and that’s fine, but it just sucks… Frank and I are both attracted to you, but because I’m a girl I have no chance with you. It’s so unfair!” Her voice cracked a bit at the end as tears came to her eyes. Susie retracted her hand from Marissa and held them close together, using them as a wall to cover her face as tears trickled down her cheeks.   
Marissa felt a sadness wash over her being, feeling Susie’s frustration and sadness affect her. The young girl held her covered hands to her face as she sobbed quietly into them. The brunette was quiet as she thought of what to say. She was sure that Susie had struggled with this dilemma with other girls she liked, not just her. Truly Marissa felt bad for her, even though she wasn’t in her shoes, she understood why she felt so frustrated.  
“I’m sorry Susie…” Marissa placed a hand on the crying girl’s shoulder. “I-I’m not in your position, but I can understand how that could be frustrating. I may not be romantically attracted to you, but you really are a kind, caring friend to me. You’ve given me solace in these crazy days. I know I can always go to you to talk and relax when I’m stressed or overwhelmed. You’re kind of a sanctuary for me and that’s pretty invaluable… Sorry… I’m probably not helping things, am I?”  
Susie’s sobs calmed down a bit. She parted her hands and looked up at the taller girl, a small smile on her face. “You… just friend-zoned me.” A few awkward chuckles escaped her lips as she spoke.   
Marissa hung her head low, feeling guilty and upset with herself at her words. ‘Great I just made everything worse…’ She thought, letting her arms hang down as she felt awkward.   
Susie watched Marissa grumble to herself, obviously feeling guilty and regretting her words. Still, Susie couldn’t hate her for it, she was trying to make her feel better and said she was worth something important to her. Slowly, Susie reached out a hand and took Marissa’s in hers. Marissa looked down at the pinkette confused as she they gently held each other’s hands.   
“It’s okay… I know you meant well.” She whispered, sniffling a little as her tears passed. “I’m happy that you like talking to me and being around me. That means a lot.”  
Marissa nodded quickly at this, squeezing Susie’s hands a bit to reassure her. “Yes, truly you are a great person and any girl would be lucky to have you!” She nodded determinedly at the pinkette who giggled at this.   
“Thanks. Haven’t heard that one before.” She whispered, winking at Marissa.   
“It’s true though! You will meet someone who loves you as much as you love them, without judgement or worry!” Marissa gave her a warm smile.   
Susie just nodded back at her, feeling better that she spoke her worries out loud. She, like the others, had seen how Frank acted around her, saw him eye her up like candy and grope her. His advances were obvious and it made her jealous, made her wish she could do the same, but she was afraid that doing so would scare Marissa off forever. She had seen it happen many times in high school and hated that because she was gay that it was somehow more wrong than a straight person doing it.   
The stigma of being gay had been really hard for her, had made her shy away to hide from ridicule. When she met Julie in science class, she didn’t seem to care at all that she was gay. Hell, Julie had said Susie was a breath of fresh air in this pompous, stuck up school of people all trying to act the same. She felt comfortable around her new friend and decided to take up Julie on her offers to party and meet new people, hoping to meet a girl who would love her in the same way. Eventually, Julie introduced her to Frank and Joey and the rest was history. Her shy, scare demeanor would lessen in this outgoing group who stood up for each other.   
“Are you okay Susie? Did I make things worse?” Marissa asked her when she noticed how quiet she had gotten.   
Susie shook her head and smiled up at Marissa, wiping away her remaining tears. “No, you’re completely fine. I was lost in my own thoughts. Let’s just look around again, ok?”   
The brunette nodded and let the pinkette lead her around the spooky area. Marissa looked over at Susie who hummed to herself as she looked through a booth.   
“You’re really at peace in this place…?” Marissa remarked, shocked at how calm she was.  
Susie chuckled and nodded at her. “Of course. I love spooky legends and haunted places. They’re really cool. Don’t you think so?”  
Marissa shook her head nervously. “Not really, especially not at night.” She rubbed her shivering arms and shot her head behind her. “Did you hear something?”   
Susie stopped rifling through the booth and listened, frowning and shaking her head. “Uh no… Are you trying to scare me Marissa?”   
“No. I promise! It sounded like someone fell into something… Where is Julie? Have you seen her?”  
Susie looked around a bit then shook her head. “I haven’t. She went on ahead to look around by herself. She’s really brave, huh?”   
Marissa slowly nodded and still looked back over her shoulder at the area the noise came from. “Hey Susie, I’m gonna head off for a bit and make sure Julie is okay…”  
Susie raised a brow at this, surprised at her words. “Really? You’re gonna look for Julie?”  
Marissa only nodded back at her, the pinkette rubbed the back of her head and shrugged.   
“I mean that’s okay. After you find her, tell her she should come explore with us! It can be a girls-only adventure!” Susie’s eyes sparkled in excitement.  
Marissa nodded at her and walked off, saying she would be back in a bit and meet her here. Susie agreed and continued rifling through boxes and looking through the small booths. Marissa couldn’t help but feel a huge sense of dread and unease after hearing something go bump in the darkness. Once again, she was hoping it was her nerves getting the best of her, but it was the same feeling she felt that night when Susie was held at gunpoint.   
‘I’ll just go check and see what that noise was... It may not have even be caused by someone. I’m sure this place, literally, falls apart every day.’ She reassured herself as she walked towards the tent in the center, Susie out of her sights now and an eerie silence replacing her comforting presence.  
Marissa stopped outside of the circus tent, peering inside the darkness within. She tried to recognize something in the dark, but only saw a few spots of moonlight peek through the torn tarp high above. Slowly, she held herself for comfort as she took a few steps inside the entrance.   
“Hello?” Her voice was barely above a whisper as she walked down some dirt steps towards the center stage. ‘God what is wrong with me? I feel like the idiot in the horror movie that dies first…’   
Eventually, her fear-driven legs led her towards the center of the circular stage. The old wood creaked underneath her with each step she took. A small sliver of moonlight shining down on her as she stopped below it. Marissa looked up at the moon, grateful for the light it provided in this eerie tent. Tearing her gaze away from the light, she looked out in the distance, seeing more seats for the audience and stairs leading to the top.   
“Hello? Anyone there?” She whispered out a little louder this time, waiting for a response but receiving none.   
“Hmm… Maybe my mind is going paranoid and I’m hearing things…” She concluded and started walking back to the exit.   
As she stepped, the floor cracked from below her, sending her foot falling through the stage. The noise of wood breaking and Marissa’s cries of pain reverberated throughout the tent. She cursed and knelt down to get a better hold of her leg. Her foot had completely fallen through but stopped just above her ankle. The wood remaining around her leg poked into her skin, drawing blood when she slowly pulled her foot through the hole. She whimpered, gritting her teeth in pain as she forced the last of it through the wooden shards.   
“Dammit! I should have never come in this tent to begin with!” She scolded herself as she grasped her hands around her injured ankle.   
“He…llo?”   
Marissa froze when she heard a quiet, hoarse voice. She wasn’t alone. Fear overcame her once more, the pain in her right leg lessening as adrenaline pulsed through her veins. She swallowed heavily, unsure if she should look behind her or not. Blue eyes peered over a shoulder, trying to see through the darkness if another person was there. Nothing seemed to be there…  
“Helloooo…”  
There was that voice again but now that Marissa wasn’t crying in pain, she could hear it clearly coming from behind her. It sounded faint and feminine.   
“Julie?” She called quietly towards the direction of the voice.   
“Heeelllp..!” The voice immediately responded, still hoarse.   
Marissa helped herself up, wincing in pain as she put weight on her right leg. Still, she persevered and hobbled towards the voice. She grit her teeth to push back the pain as she strode through the darkness, eventually finding a small doorway leading underneath the stage. She took the stairs down carefully, not wanting to hurt her leg any worse. Finally, she stepped on the sandy floor below and searched the area for the sound of the noise. Marissa’s eyes locked on to a figure lit up by the moonlight, they were laying on the dusty floor right below where she fell through.   
‘Julie!’ She shook in fear when she recognized the figure that laid on the floor, unmoving.   
Limping over as quickly as she could, she called out to her friend, ignoring the pain in her leg as sand was kicked up into her wound. When she was close enough, Marissa knelt down beside Julie and struggled to help her up into a sitting position. Julie’s body was heavy, constantly falling forward as she was too weak to help Marissa lift her. Finally, Marissa had her back rested against one of the large wooden poles that kept the tent upright.   
“Julie! Julie! Wake up! What happened to you?” Marissa cried out to her friend, shaking her shoulders to try to bring her to.   
After a few moments of no response, Julie started to groan, her head that hung low had started to waver a bit. Marissa let out a small sigh of relief when her friend became responsive.   
“Ma…” Julie whispered hoarsely, barely above a whisper. She struggled to lift her head and look at the brunette.   
Marissa shook her head and knelt down lower to get into her field of view. “Don’t push yourself too hard Julie… I’m here…” Marissa was curious about what had happened and couldn’t help but ask, “What happened to you?”   
The short haired girl groaned again, her head waving back and forth slowly as she tried to gain her bearings. Marissa watched the young girl who couldn’t respond to her and frowned, getting worried with her weak state of being.   
‘Something happened… She looks really out of it…’ She thought before raising a brow when Julie began to whimper a little.   
“He…uhn…I…” She still struggled to speak but was starting to be able to raise her head a bit better than before.   
Marissa frowned as she tried to understand what Julie was trying to say. She shook her head after a minute and reached out towards the girl. “Come on. Let’s get you out of here and get you some help.”  
“Oh? Did I win a prize today or what? Two for one deal. Fuck yeah…” A low man’s voice spoke from behind the ladies.   
Marissa froze as she rested her hands on Julie’s shoulders, she swallowed heavily and slowly looked behind her. Faintly, she could see a figure move about in the darkness. Finally, a man appeared in the moonlight a few feet away from them both. He was a stout older man in his 50’s, face unshaven and balding on the top. His skin was dirty and his clothes old and stained. Marissa frowned at the man, feeling mal intentions coming from him.   
“Who are you? Did you hurt Julie?” She asked the man, staying in front of Julie to shield her from his view.   
He cackled a bit at this, holding his stomach as he laughed it up. “You damn kids don’t know nothing anymore. None o’ ya watch the news or listen to the rumors. Hard to believe neither of ya know me.”  
Marissa’s face twisted in annoyance at his cocky attitude. “No we don’t know who you are and we don’t care. We’re leaving now.” She said sternly and turned back to Julie to help her up.   
Julie groaned as Marissa started to help her up, suddenly Julie began to cry out in fear. Marissa looked behind her shoulder and saw a rusty old shovel swing at her injured leg. She screamed in pain and dropped Julie who fell on her stomach on the dirty ground; Marissa fell away from her and landed on the cold floor as well, holding her leg in extricating pain. The man stood between the two and began cackling again as he watched the two girls groaning on the floor below him.   
“Neither of ya are goin’ anywheres. If ya were smart about saving yer friend then ya woulda not left a trail of blood leadin’ down here.” He explained, crouching over Marissa who whimpered in pain, holding her bloody leg.   
Marissa huffed painful breaths, peeking open an eye to glare at the man when she heard him. “Save? What were… you going to do… to her?”   
“I AM going to do what I do to all mah victims. Have my way wit’ her then chop her up inta lil pieces and bury her around the area. Normally I wouldn’t hold up in this creepy place, but the damn police chased me away from that pathetic little town. So I hang out here waitin’ fer stupid girls like you to wander here.”  
Marissa clenched her fist in the dirt as she listened to the story. She knew they should have never stopped here, that this was a stupid idea. Of course, the one abandoned location they stop at is housing a serial rapist and killer-what were the fucking chances?  
Marissa was torn from her thoughts when she heard Julie try to speak again. The man had walked over towards Julie and knelt down beside her. Julie whimpered as the man reached out and began to stroke the side of her face. Her green eyes began to cloud with tears as she laid there, unable to protest. His hand moved up to her short brown hair and tugged on it enough to get a cry from Julie.   
“I don’t care if yer tryin’a be butch in yer appearance. Yer still a woman in yer body.” He smirked at her and moved his hand down to her jacket, undoing the zipper.   
As he began to unzip her hoodie, Marissa stood up from behind, anger flowing through her veins as she watched. He had just slipped under her shirt and began groping her breast as she lunged at the man. She yelled out and began hitting him in the head and neck area to get him off her. He grunted in pain but turned his focus on Marissa. Quickly, he caught one of her wrists in his hand and her neck in his other, holding her back. She choked out some words of anger as he halted her in place, standing her up with him.   
“Now that wasn’t very nice… You’ll have yer turn soon enough.” He growled and shoved her face down into the dirt and sand roughly. “I gotta do the butch first before the sedatives wear off…”  
Marissa cried out in pain as he forced her head down in the dirt. She grit her teeth and tried to struggle him off her. ‘So that’s why Julie couldn’t move or respond. He had drugged her when she was away from the group. That bastard…’ She thought angrily, her free hand clenching the dirt in frustration.   
The man stared down at Marissa who still struggled to get him off her. He growled in annoyance before snickering in her ear. “If only I didn’t put those sedatives away, I woulda used them on ya to calm ya down. I guess I’ll have ta do somethin’ else to keep ya in place…” He trailed off and let go of her completely.   
The brunette looked back over her shoulder, confused at why he was getting off her until he brought his foot down on her injured leg, stomping multiple times on the wound. She cried out in agonizing pain as he relentlessly stomped on her wound. Finally, he seemed to stop his assault. She gasped for air as he got behind her and reached out to grab her long, brown hair between his grimy fingers. Marissa cried out as he pulled her up by her long hair and forced her to look at Julie who watched back with terror in her eyes.   
“Now you listen ta me and MAYBE I’ll consider saving you for another day… You better behave like the good girl yer supposed ta be or I skip HER fucking and move straight to the murder.” He clenched his fingers tighter around her hair and tugged her back towards his face.  
Marissa grit her teeth in pain as he held her up roughly. Her eyes peeked open to look into Julie’s afraid and sad ones. Julie was helpless, at the man’s complete mercy and now Marissa was going to be in the same boat, just like before… Marissa’s emotion faded from her face as painful, scary memories resurfaced.  
The man noticed she was struggling less and chuckled, leaning towards her neck to smell her. His tight grip loosened just enough to release some of her hair so he could feel the soft length weave through his fingers. He relished the feeling and whispered something about how all women should have long hair for men to enjoy.  
The killer chuckled a bit himself and whispered in her ear once more, staring at Julie who laid on the floor. “You may as well enjoy the show… get in the mood. Cuz whatcha see is what’s happenin’ to you nex-“  
Suddenly, Marissa’s arms moved swiftly from her sides and up towards his hand that gripped her hair. A flash from the moonlight was all that shown in her hands as she swung, making contact with her hair and cutting herself free from the man’s grip. Additionally, she had cut close enough to inflict a deep wound on his digits that held her in place, blood spraying out from the long gash. He grunted in surprise and cried in pain as he started to fall back from the release of her hair, her long tresses still in his grasp. As he was too shocked to notice, the other hand that Marissa raised had dirt hidden in it; quickly, she flung it at his face to disorient him.   
The killer cried out as the dirt flung in his eyes, letting go of her hair to cover his face and wipe it away. A couple of quick footsteps were heard, and Marissa had, suddenly, jumped at the man, using her body weight to knock him down on his back hard. She sat on top of his large belly and had a knife lifted in the air, threateningly. Even though Julie was still under the drug’s influence, she could see the dark, malice look in Marissa’s eyes, a shadow casted on her face as she raised the knife higher yet. Julie was baffled at what she was seeing, unable to believe that this sweet innocent girl had a knife raised and ready to kill.   
After a moment, Marissa cried out in anger and quickly brought the knife down on the man. He cried out and held out his hands for protection just as it made contact with his left one. He shrieked in pain as the knife stabbed through his hand and pulled it down to the ground, pinning him. He used his free hand to try and pull the knife out as it stuck in the stone below. Marissa held the knife in place, panting heavily as she still sat over top of him.   
Marissa moved her good leg to hold the killer down by his neck, cutting off air as he tried to breathe. This kept him in place, focusing more on getting her leg off his neck instead of reaching for the knife in his hand. He croaked for a little while before starting to go quiet. Finally, he let his hand fall to the side as he became too light-headed to lift it. After what seemed like hours, Marissa got off the man and walked over to Julie who watched in silence at the scene. Marissa didn’t say a word, only took quick breathes as she stopped before Julie. The man coughed as air entered his passage without anything blocking it. He growled and finally unlatched the knife from his hand tossing it aside. He cried out from the pain as he helped himself up with his wounded hands. His left hand had a large gash in the center while his right hand’s fingers were cut open and bleeding down his arm. Marissa froze when she heard him cursing and crying out in pain, not moving as she listened to the man slowly help himself up.   
“You…fuckin’ bitch… You damn witch! I’ll kill ya both!” He yelled and charged at them in a fury.   
Julie gasped in fear as the man ran at them. Quickly, Marissa reached down to her left and picked up his shovel from before. The brunette swung it at the man just as he lunged at her, effectively hitting him in the chest and neck area hard enough to send him falling back. He coughed roughly from the hit and another from the fall and became silent. Marissa panted in place, watching his form remain unmoving on the floor for a while. She walked over to the old, bloodied hunting knife in the sand and put it in her shorts pocket. The man still didn’t move but breathed slowly. Deciding he wouldn’t get up this time, she tossed the shovel away and hobbled over to Julie, finally helping her up into a standing position.   
“Let’s get the hell out of here…” Marissa finally spoke up as she moved an arm of Julie’s over her shoulder.   
She made sure that Julie’s weight was on her good leg as they headed for the stairs in the dark. A few minutes of walking slowly finally led them upstairs towards the circus area. The fog in Julie’s head was clearing up as time went by, allowing her to speak better.   
“Why…?” She whispered hoarsely to the injured girl carrying her.   
Marissa didn’t spare a glance at her, still just looking ahead and focusing on getting them both out of this hellish tent.   
“Why… save me?” Julie asked again, still in disbelief at the events that unfolded in the past hour. “I’ve only been mean to you…”   
“No one deserves to die like that.” Marissa said bluntly, still looking ahead as they climbed the dirty steps.   
……..Meanwhile…  
Susie had searched the entire area and headed back to the rendezvous point expecting to see her friends there, but there was no one around. She frowned, starting to get worried as she waited for them to return. She paced back and forth, debating if she should go off and look for them, or wait a bit longer. After a few moments went by, two figures approached her in the dark. Susie gasped in relief and called to them.   
“Marissa?! Julie?! I was getting worried!” Her smile began to fade when she saw it was Frank and Joey instead. “Oh…”  
“Good to see you too Susie.” Joey chuckled while Frank frowned at her upset.   
“Where’s Marissa? I thought she was with you?” He was starting to get nervous when he didn’t see Marissa around.   
Susie frowned, feeling guilty for letting Marissa go off on her own. “Well… she went off looking for Julie. She said she would be back with her so we could explore together…”  
“And now she hasn’t returned?” Frank finished, getting angry while Susie got quiet and took a step back. ‘She probably took this as her chance to finally run away! God dammit!’ He cursed in his head and ran off in search of her.   
The other two quickly followed Frank as they searched the area for the girls. At first, they were unsuccessful, until they heard screaming coming from the circus tent. The trio sped off in that direction and finally found Marissa and Julie as they exited the tent. Marissa was carrying Julie along weakly with a shivering leg.   
“Marissa?! Julie?!” Frank called out, now terrified that they were injured. “What happened to you two?”  
Joey and Susie ran after Frank, meeting him beside the hurt girls. Susie gasped and held her hands up to her mouth when she saw their hurt states.   
“Omigod what happened to you Julie? Marissa you’re bleeding!” Susie cried out as she looked her friends up and down.   
Joey’s face frowned in worry. He looked at the two ladies and noticed the same things Susie pointed out before seeing Marissa’s shorts pocket was stained a deep red, his old blade peeking out. ‘Did she use her new knife? I don’t see any blood on Julie…’  
The worried trio waited intently for answers as the ladies panted a bit. Julie felt shame and disappointment overtake her as she thought about the situation she got them both into. Just as she was about to speak, Marissa chuckled.   
“Well… I went off to find Julie. She was in this old circus tent, standing at the stage in the center. I ran over to her on the stage and, being my clumsy self, stepped on some old wood and my foot fell through. Julie got my foot out and was helping me towards the exit. I lost my footing as we walked up the stairs and I took us both tumbling down. Julie hit her head hard so she’s pretty dazed from it… Sorry we made you guys worry.” Marissa looked away while Julie listened in disbelief at her made-up story, tears coming to her eyes.   
Frank noticed Marissa wavering and struggling to hold up Julie and quickly reached out and caught them before they could fall. He called for Joey to help and he quickly sped over to their side, taking Julie from Marissa. Frank swooped Marissa off her feet, carrying her bridal style, as he started to head back towards the entrance  
“Just take it easy you two. We’ll head back to the truck and get you some help.” Frank told the group as he led them through the dark park.   
Marissa nodded, thanking them as she felt a wave of relief wash over her leg when she didn’t have to walk on it. Susie followed between the boys, looking between both girls, suddenly, she gasped as she looked at Marissa.   
“Marissa! What happened to your pretty long hair?! It’s cut so short!” She cried in shock as she reached out and looked at the uneven ends that were now only just past her shoulders for length.   
Julie and Marissa’s eyes widened a bit at this, getting nervous that they would find out what happened. Marissa let out a sigh and shook her head.   
“It’s just hair… it’s not really a big deal… No need to worry about it.” She muttered, not sure what else to say.  
“Not a big deal?! Marissa, you told me you loved having long hair when we first met! I can’t imagine how long it took you to grow your hair out to that length! And now it’s all gone! What happened?” Susie was freaking out, feeling sad for Marissa’s lost hair.   
“It’s because of me…” Julie muttered in Joey’s arms.  
The group looked over to the short-haired girl who averted her guilty eyes away. “It was my fault… If I wasn’t so jealous of her, Marissa wouldn’t have lost her long, pretty hair… I’m sorry…” She started to cry at the end, her emotions taking over.   
The boys were silent as they listened, Frank frowned as he listened, not quite convinced at what he was hearing. Susie started to feel bad and rub the back of her neck awkwardly.   
“Um… well… At least let me give you a proper haircut and even up the ends when we have the time.” She offered Marissa, trying to lighten the mood a little.  
Marissa smiled at the pinkette weakly, nodding. “I would like that, thank you…”   
Not another word was spoken as the group left the old amusement park behind them. Frank hopped in the driver’s seat and helped Marissa in while Susie held up Julie in the back of the truck. Joey raced to the back and pulled out a sack with gauze and rubbing alcohol. Making his way back to the front, he warned Marissa that he had to do a lot of cleaning to make sure it wouldn’t get infected. She nodded, bracing herself with the incoming pain as Joey prepared himself. He started rubbing the solution on her wound, causing her to cry out in pain from the burn. Joey did his best to try and soothe Marissa, telling her it shouldn’t take too long if she stopped squirming. Still, she kept moving, her body flinching each time he tried to clean it.  
Frank reached over and held Marissa’s hand in his. “You can squeeze it if you want.” He offered calmly, staring deep into her pained blue eyes with his concerned brown ones.   
She nodded and took Frank up on his offer, gripping his hand tightly as the pain got worse from Joey rubbing away the dirt and grime from her wound. She bit her lip to hold back the pain, soon it began to draw blood. Frank quickly turned her face towards him and rested her head against his shoulder.   
“Don’t hurt yourself further. Bite my hood if you have to.” He instructed her, holding his free hand against the back of her head to rest against his shoulder.   
Marissa let go of her lip, letting out a cry of pain as Joey began to finish up with the solution. Tears fell down and stained his hoodie as Frank whispered comforting things to Marissa. Julie was silent as she watched from the back of the truck. Her green eyes moved between Frank’s comforting words and Marissa’s cries of pain. She saw how concerned he seemed for the injured girl, how much he tried to help her. She felt a pain tug at her chest, a tinge of guilt and jealous at this, but stayed silent. Her thoughts went back to the events that the two girls just went through, her anger unable to find any reason to be mad at the poor girl.   
Finally, Joey was wrapping her ankle, to be finished with her injury in a few seconds.   
“Alright almost done. You did great Marissa.” He smiled over at the brunette who whimpered in pain, her head still resting on Frank’s shoulder. “Susie, you can bring Julie to the front. She should ride up here while her concussion goes away.”  
Susie quickly nodded and helped Julie to the front. Joey gathered the dirty gauze and bottle of solution, making room for Julie to sit beside Marissa. Julie noticed Frank help Marissa get situated and buckled in, whispering to her that he would take care of her in the car ride. Instead of envy, a small smile tugged on Julie’s lips.   
When the others were ready in the back, Frank started the truck, turning on the lights in the dark night. The empty sounds of the amusement park cooed to the group as Frank drove off into the night; leaving the park behind without a single item to remember it by.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoo another chapter. This chapter was supposed to be much longer, but the more I wrote and more I thought about what I wanted to do in the next chapter, I decided to cut it off there. Then at least it wouldn't seem to drag on too much and you guys get an update. Win-win.
> 
> So I've been replaying my Fire Emblem Fates game and I have been rekindling my love for those characters all over again. ^_^ I always wanted to write a fanfic with either a Takumi and OC or Leo and OC. I've been bouncing some ideas in my head for a story/plot but haven't settled on one yet... Depends on if I get the motivation to do so lol. 
> 
> As always, thanks for reading and for the love you show this story. I appreciate it~


	8. Let's be Real

Fog began rolling in the cold, dreary resort, filling the lonely place with the eerie mist as it expanded further and further. The random containers of fire casted odd shadows and shapes behind the mist that encompassed the area. Aside from the crackling of the fire and crows’ fluttering wings, the place was silent, empty of life it seemed. Even the grass seemed frozen in time, looking the same as it did before.   
Slowly, Marissa took a few steps forward, examining the area carefully. She swallowed heavily, feeling non-existent eyes on her from all angles. The brunette remained silent, walking around the foggy, snowy area alone. She looked around at the remains of the once resort and felt her heart sink in sadness and fear. What was once full of life and excitement, was now forlorn and void of happiness.   
Suddenly, Marissa shot her head up in the direction behind her; a pained scream came from behind her, clearly not too far off from how loud it sounded. Her feet took off running before she could think, leading her in the direction of the yelling. At first, she had gotten a bit lost, unable to find her way through the fog, until she heard thrashing and grunting coming towards her. She swiftly moved behind a broken wall and watched as a figure carried someone over their shoulder. Marissa’s blue eyes squinted, trying desperately to see what was going on. She gasped, seeing a smaller, blue-haired figure with a hoodie, tights, and skirt stop in place; after a moment, they turned a bit and hoisted the young, dark-haired male on a hook, piercing his chest with the device. Marissa covered her mouth in horror as the curly haired male cried out in pain, grasping the hook as it went through his chest. Without a moment’s notice, black tendrils formed around the hook, and began to jab at the young man. He cried out in fear and reached forward to grab and hold them in place.   
Sudden, overwhelming terror took over Marissa’s being, causing her to cry out in fear at the intangible black monster attacking the young, curly-haired man. She stared up at the top of the hook, trying to understand what unholy being her eyes were seeing. The trapped man struggled to hold back the long, dark tendril that reached towards his chest; still, there were others that lingered around his body, not even attempting to attack him. It waited patiently, almost excitedly as the poor man struggled for his life.   
‘What is this monster? What’s going on? Why am I here?!’ She cried out in her mind and frantically clutched her hair between her fingers.   
Slowly, she began to fall to her knees, her fear and helplessness taking over her previous rational and composed form. The cries of pain and desperation from the man on the hook echoed around the empty, foggy area. Marissa began muttering to herself about this not being real, about trying to wake up from this awful nightmare, hitting her head to wake herself up. The crunching of snowy grass was heard over the cries from the victim. Her panicking was halted for a brief second, looking up at the blue-haired person who hooked the man. They stood a few feet from her, standing quietly with the hooked male behind them. Watery, blue eyes looked the figure up and down. They saw a shorter, small person who looked female judging by their stature, clothes, and long wavy hair. They wore a hoodie, skirt, tights and converse shoes, and adorned a mask with stitches on the face.   
“Susie…?” Marissa whispered out loud, not sure if she was hallucinating or trying to find familiarity in this foreign place.   
The killer with the mask pulled out a knife and suddenly began dashing with agitation and vigor. Marissa flinched and fell back on her bum as they lunged towards her. She held her hands out as a reflex for protection and closed her eyes in fear. “No! Wait-“ She cried out at the killer until they dashed right through her and began to chase an older man with sunglasses and a hat around some boxes.  
When Marissa felt no pain, she opened her eyes and witnessed the chase scene unfold. The killer huffed as they chased after the man with insane speed, jumping over the wood pieces the older man would throw down. She swung and hit the man, feeling another wave of energy come over her as the man cried out and sped away quickly. Quiet crinkling came from behind Marissa, drawing her attention to a young woman with beanie, underneath was a head of purple bobbed hair, the other half was shaven. Quickly, they ran over to the man and reached up to his upper torso, starting to lift him off the hook. The tendrils immediately stopped, almost obeying the hero as they helped the victim off the hook.   
Marissa let a sigh of relief escape from her mouth as she watched the save, full of hope. Suddenly, a cry of anger and frustration came from behind her. Blue eyes widened in horror as they looked behind and saw the killer approach the pair. Her face paled as the killer raised a knife and began charging at them.   
“You can’t save your friend!” She screamed at the pair.   
The man cried out in pain as the female pressed against his wounds too harshly, her attention distracted by the killer charging at them. Marissa’s breath caught in her throat as she shakily stood up in place and tried to block the path. She felt a wave of courage come over her as she cried out, practically begging to be able to intervene before this horror scene could get worse.   
Tears fell down her face as the strangely familiar bluette ran straight through her. “Susie...... PLEASE DON’T!”   
Eyes shot wide open, followed by heavy panting as Marissa awoke from her nightmare. Suddenly, she grit her teeth in pain and pulled her injured leg against her body for comfort.   
“Hey! Are you okay?” Frank’s worried voice came from behind her.   
A hand rested itself on her shoulder, trying to provide some comfort. Her eyes slowly opened when the pain passed, they tried adjusting to the darkness. She felt the bumpiness of the gravel road lurch the old truck around, bringing her back to reality as her senses returned. Immediately, she realized she had fallen asleep, laying to her right side against Julie. The brunette’s eyes widened in fear and she quickly flew back into a sitting position. She waited to see if Julie was awake. After a moment she let out a groan of relief and anxiety.   
‘Dammit! Not again!’ She thought and realized that Frank still had his hand on her shoulder. She felt her soul leave her body for a brief moment when she looked back and saw him staring at her. ‘Noooo… Why did he have to see that? I’m gonna get so much shit for this…’   
Her expression of agony and dread changed into confusion as Frank’s worried face looked her over. “Wait… what?” She asked, seeing his expectant gaze on her.   
Frank raised a curious brow at her, worried she was hurt worse than the group originally thought. “You were crying out in your sleep. Looked like a pretty awful nightmare so I tried wakin’ you… You okay?”  
Marissa’s face turned to genuine shock at this. “You’re… worried about me because of a nightmare?” She asked incredulously.  
Frank’s worried expression turned into a look of annoyance. “Well, looks like you’re just fine. Sorry for caring.” He answered for her, a tone of irritation obvious in his voice.  
Immediately, Marissa felt bad for her choice words. “Er… I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it to sound judging like that. I guess I wasn’t expecting you to worry about me having a bad dream.”   
Frank shrugged, his focus back on the road as he drove in the late hours. “Didn’t seem like a bad dream to me…”  
Marissa raised a brow at him confused. “What do you mean? You said I was crying out-“  
“Bad dreams can be shitty, but then you wake up and you hardly remember it. Nightmares stick with you even after it ends… They fuck with you. Sometimes NIGHTMARES can be more traumatic than reality.”  
His knowledgeable words stunned her. He appeared to be talking from experience with how serious he had gotten on the subject. She was silent as she reflected on her nightmares; they seemed to be getting worse and happening more often than usual. She was sure that witnessing these kids murdering people and almost getting killed herself was bringing them on.   
Her silence was louder than words and it caught Frank’s attention. “You haven’t been sleeping much and when you do it’s not for long. Something’s up.”  
Marissa frowned and looked away, getting annoyed with Frank’s knowing words. “How could I sleep well after watching you guys kill people?”   
Frank shook his head and muttered a few things to himself. He tried to look at her face that she turned away. When he felt the car swerve more than usual, he cursed and brought his attention back on the road. “Good luck trying to convince me that’s the reason when you can’t even convince yourself. It’s obvious it’s gotten worse since we killed that senile man and took those papers. You’ve been trying to read and understand them for days. I think it’s time you gave up on them and stopped.”   
Marissa glared back at Frank and shook her head stubbornly. “I don’t think the papers are what’s keeping me up at night! I’ve read scarier stuff than this before and I think I’m just starting to understand what all this gibberish means! I can handle it, so back off!”  
Frank was silent for a few moments, eventually turning his gaze from the road to Marissa who pouted at him childishly. His face was expressionless as he stared back at her. Suddenly, he let out a quiet fit of laughter, trying not to wake the others. Marissa looked at him confused as Frank shook his head.  
“What’s so funny?”  
“You. Look who’s being the childish, reckless one now?” Frank smirked over at her, knowing he was right.   
Marissa gasped a little at this and was about to talk back to Frank when she realized this was what he was talking about. She bit her tongue and looked away from him, muttering something about being too tired to argue further.   
Frank calmed his laughter and let out a sigh, reaching over to turn her face towards him.  
“Look, you don’t have to tell me about your nightmares.” His tone was quiet and serious as he looked over at the girl. “I just want to make sure you’re okay. I’ve had horrible nightmares that repeat too and damn do they bring ya down. Sometimes talking about them helps and other times you just gotta get through them. I just… I’m here for you, okay?”   
Her eyes caught his dark ones as they stared at each other. He slowly moved his hand from her face down to her hand resting beside her leg. Gently, his fingers wrapped around hers for comfort. Marissa sensed how genuine Frank was, how concerned he was of her. A little bit of pain seemed to flash through his eyes as she began to move her hand. Then, she squeezed his hand back and let it rest between them on the seat. Frank’s heart fluttered in glee at this, happy they were holding hands. Though not a word was spoken, the two seemed to be communicating with each other through their gazes. They seemed to stare each other for hours, unable to look away.  
Eventually, they heard a groan come from Julie who was sleeping beside Marissa. The pair jumped a bit, broken from their stares and looked over at the quiet, sleeping girl. Marissa let out a sigh and removed her hand from Frank’s, he frowned a bit but returned his hand to the steering wheel.  
“I should… try to get some sleep.” Marissa whispered, shifting around a bit as she felt awkward from their moment before.  
Frank just nodded at her, focusing on the road and watching the dim headlights light up the gravel. Then, he felt something lean against him. He glanced to his right and saw Marissa leaning against his shoulder for support, closing her eyes to get some sleep. A small smile crept on to his face, unable to hide it as she relaxed against him. Frank started humming to himself, enjoying the moment as he drove down the dark highway.   
……………………………………………..  
The group of vagabonds eventually stopped in a small, quiet town to pull over for resources and rest. With some determination, Marissa was able to convince the group to use their money to pay for the gas and items they needed, instead of obtaining them by theft. Julie and Joey immediately pulled out their cigarettes when they pulled over at the gas station, happy to be able to walk around and stretch.   
“Want one?” She offered Frank and Susie, holding one in her mouth.  
Susie nodded and took a cigarette from her pouch, digging around for her lighter. Frank held up a hand and shook his head, not wanting one because he was pumping gas. His friends raised a brow at this. Marissa walked beside Frank and poked him gently on the back to get his attention.   
“It’s okay. You can go smoke while I fill the truck up. I don’t mind.” She offered.   
Still, Frank shook his head and stayed beside the pump. “Nah. I don’t need one. Really, I’m good.” He smiled warmly at his friends and leaned against the truck casually.   
Susie noticed Frank had looked back at Marissa, eyeing her up as he waited for the pump to finish. She felt a small amount of guilt and jealousy twitch within her. She stopped looking for her lighter and pocketed the cigarette instead, walking over to Marissa who was looking around the small gas station, bored.  
“I’m not gonna smoke either since Marissa doesn’t like the smell.” Susie smiled and looked up at Marissa excitedly. “If I’m cutting your hair, I’ll need to get close to make sure it turns out beautiful!”  
Marissa looked at Susie surprised, but couldn’t hide a smile from appearing on her face. “Really? You would hold off for me? Thanks Susie.”   
Susie gasped quietly to herself and beamed at Marissa, holding her hands to her face excitedly. “Ooh I’m really gonna miss your long hair, but I have some great ideas for cute short hair! You’ll be a princess, I swear!”  
Marissa smiled at Susie awkwardly, holding her hands up and waving them to calm her down. “Eh. As long as my hair is straightened out, I’ll be content.”  
“Well I want to go beyond your expectations! You’ll love your new style, I just know it.” Susie’s eyes sparkled in excitement, grabbing a hold of Marissa’s hands giddily.  
Joey and Frank chuckled as they watched Susie get excited, talking about cutting Marissa’s hair. Julie watched silently, not saying anything as she smoked her cigarette. Her gaze was straight-faced but watching her pink-haired friend beam from giddiness couldn’t stop her from smiling herself. Susie’s smile seemed contagious and everyone seemed to become uplifted and happy.   
………………………  
After stopping by a store to pick up some supplies, the group drove to a small hotel on the edge of the highway they were traveling along. They headed inside and rented out two rooms, taking in some supplies they needed for the night. Frank was unpacking some plastic bags of food and noticed those eerie papers catching his eye in the corner table. He froze in place, staring at them from a distance, the dark sketches of long, black spidery legs catching his attention. His stares focused on them, unable to look away as he stood in place like a statue. His eyes seemed to be playing tricks on him when the tendrils started to move on the page, twitching in place.   
“Hey Frank. Where’s Marissa at?”   
Frank’s focus was interrupted by Julie suddenly entering the room he was alone in. He jumped a bit, blinking a bit before staring back at the page. The moving had ceased, and he was sure he was just hallucinating from hours of driving in the dark, down lonely old roads.   
Julie raised a brow at Frank when he stared at the papers. She rested a hand on his shoulder to get his attention. “Hey, are you okay?”  
“Oh ye-yeah. Sorry I was just distracted is all.” Frank shook his head a bit and turned back to face Julie. “Last I heard, Susie took her to cut her hair.”  
Julie looked at Frank for a bit, making sure he was alright. “Okay… I checked the other room and didn’t see them there. They must have went to the bathroom or something. Well, if you see her, tell her I want to talk to her in private.”  
Frank raised a brow at her, curious on what this was about. “Okay… sure. Everything alright Julie?”  
She just nodded and smiled at Frank. “Yes. It’s fine. I just needed to speak to her in private. I’ll be at the park near the hotel when she wants to talk to me.”  
Julie walked off to the exit, Frank staring at her confused before shrugging. “Alright. I’ll let her know if I see her.”   
Julie hummed to herself and nodded, calling out to Frank to get some sleep as she left. Frank rolled his eyes but nodded, returning to unpacking the bags. Julie smiled a little at this and headed towards the park, lost in thought about the night Marissa saved her life.  
………  
“Julie? You wanted to speak with me?”   
Spaced out, green eyes shot back to find the source of the voice. Julie was walking down a path, her hands in her pockets. She turned around and saw Marissa approaching her. Julie smiled a little when Marissa stopped before her, looking at the short-haired girl confused.   
“I see Susie trimmed your hair. It looks nice.” Julie complimented the brunette. “I like your new clothes too.”  
Marissa bushed a little at this but smiled back at her, nodding. Her hair was cut to her shoulders, instead of hanging in uneven pieces against her shoulder blades. Instead of her white tank top and jean shorts, she was wearing a blue V neck and black shorts that stopped at her mid-thighs.   
“Yeah Susie did a great job… and my old clothes were so tattered, stained and smelly. I was happy Frank let me get new clothes.” Marissa rubbed the back of her head shyly, unsure of what else to say.  
Julie nodded at the brunette, her smile fading a bit as she thought about what she wanted to talk about. “Let’s go somewhere to talk. It’s important.”  
Marissa noticed the change in aura and nodded, getting a little worried to talk with her in private. The two girls hadn’t spoken much since that fateful night, she wasn’t sure if Julie wanted to talk about it or not. The others seemed to forget about it, or at least, didn’t ask any further.   
The blue-eyed girl looked around and pointed off to a lonely swing set in the distance. “How about there? We can swing and talk alone.”  
Julie nodded and followed Marissa back to the lonely pair of swings. They both took a seat and held on to the chains beside them. Marissa was silent, watching Julie and waiting for her to say something. Unsure, she spoke up, “So… what did you want to talk about?”  
Julie gripped the chains tightly and frowned, not looking over at her. “You saved my life that night… You saved me from rape… You got really hurt… You lost your hair…”  
Marissa was silent, a frown apparent on her face as she listened. Julie felt herself shake a little as she remembered the man on top of her.   
“You had a lot to lose that night. Ever since then, I’ve been tormented with guilt and confusion about what you did. I’ve only been rude and cruel to you. You had no reason to help me. So, my question is why? Why did you help me? Why did you lie about what really happened? Why? WHY?” Julie felt unwanted tears stinging her eyes as she spoke. She didn’t want to seem weak and pathetic in front of Marissa.  
Marissa listened quietly, feeling guilty herself that Julie was suffering and she hadn’t bothered to ask her about it. Deep inside her, she didn’t want to hate Julie, but all the bad encounters had kept her distant from the girl. She felt guilty that she hadn’t bothered to talk to Julie about this, she let her feelings of disdain take over and ignore her altruistic side.  
“Julie… I’m sorry I haven’t really asked you about this. I wasn’t sure if you wanted to talk or not…” Marissa frowned a bit to herself. “If you want my honest answer… I-I don’t know how to explain it. At first, I found you passed out on the floor and I was going to carry you out. No big deal. Then that man showed up and things changed. He… started talking like those guys in the truck did…”  
Julie listened to Marissa trail off and frowned, letting her continue when she gathered herself.   
“I-I just remembered how terrified I felt that day. I was tied up and unable to escape or fight back. I-I didn’t want to get raped and used. It was so scary… so scary that I would rather embrace someone murdering me than getting raped and sold off. That serial killer, that rapist triggered those same feelings in me. I almost felt like I saw my old self in you that day, and my instincts took over to protect you no matter what.”   
Marissa’s eyes focused on Julie’s, her face stern and serious. “No one deserves to be raped.”  
Julie’s eyes widened at this and she looked away from Marissa. She shook her head. “Why did you cover up the real story?”  
Marissa’s face fell to an unsure frown at this. “Uh well… I know if I were in your shoes, I wouldn’t want anyone to know that I almost got… used. I guess I assumed we were out of that shitty situation and that the others didn’t need to worry about it, that we needed to leave and get help more… God, I’m not sure if that even makes sense…”  
“No… you’re okay. I understand… I am grateful you didn’t tell them about what happened. The only reason why that happened is the fucker jumped me from behind. He was a god-damned coward.” She cursed, getting angry at the memories. “If Frank knew what happened he would’ve destroyed that bastard.”   
Marissa watched Julie for a bit and frowned, thinking back to Frank’s proposition. ‘How do I tell her about that? I don’t want it to seem like I only saved her because of it…’ “Julie? I need to tell you something…”  
Green eyes looked over to meet nervous blue ones. She watched Marissa fiddle with her fingers nervously and squirm. “What is it?”  
“Remember the night the old man pointed a gun at Susie?” She trailed off as Julie listened. “Well… Frank and I were talking about letting me go… The day you guys killed those traffickers and brought me along, you all saved my life. He came to the conclusion that I had to return the favor. He would let me go if I saved all four of you.”  
“You-you only saved me to repay a debt?!” Julie grit her teeth in anger and clutched the chains tightly between her fingers.   
Marissa quickly shook her head and looked at Julie worriedly. “No! I promise I wasn’t even thinking about that when it happened! I know you may never believe me, but I figured I would bring it up and tell you about it from me instead of hearing from someone else. I want to address it before it ruins our chances to ever become friends!”   
Julie’s anger dissipated after hearing this, looking at Marissa surprised. “You… want to be friends?”  
Marissa frowned down at the ground and nodded slightly. “Yes… well at least on better terms with each other. If we’re going to be traveling around for a while, I’d really like to get along with everyone. I know I can’t force you to like me, but I figure I can at least be truthful and real to you about the situation I’m in.” Marissa looked up at Julie seriously. “Eventually, I’ll save everyone, repay my debts to you all and get to go back home. I’m sorry you had to find out about it after that night… I-I never planned to tell Frank or anyone else about what happened that night; so as far as it’s concerned, I still owe you, Joey and Frank a debt.”  
Julie frowned at Marissa, unsure of what to say or think about what she confessed. ‘I suppose she is right… If she only cared about leaving, then she would have told Frank about that man. She is being honest about that at least…’   
Marissa noticed how silent Julie had gotten and let out a sigh of frustration. ‘Dammit… now she hates me again and just after she complimented me.’   
Julie let out a sigh and shook her head, looking over to Marissa. “Hey, thanks for telling me about the situation. I’m honestly not sure what to believe or think, but I do appreciate your honesty. I mean, I think I owe you the benefit of the doubt anyway by how shitty I’ve treated you this whole week. I’m sorry for being so mean to you.”   
Marissa’s jaw dropped a bit at hearing this. Julie noticed this and let out a tsk of annoyance. “Don’t look so shocked. I can be nice and apologize you know.” She growled a little.   
Marissa blushed a little and closed her mouth, nodding quickly and apologizing. She looked away awkwardly and rubbed the back of her neck. She kicked herself in place on the swing and thought of what to say. “It’s alright Julie… I’m sure you didn’t like me suddenly forced in your friend group.”  
Julie nodded at this and let out a sigh of annoyance. “Honestly, I’m still not a fan of it, but it looks like it may be a while until you leave, so I guess I should start acting mature and accept it... I-I’ve been jealous of you this whole time... Everyone else seemed to really love you, especially Frank. I felt like I had no control of the matter. Suddenly there was this innocent, perfect little princess we had to travel with and take care of. She never did anything wrong, never yelled back or did anything wrong. I felt so pathetic and useless compared to you, like everyone liked you more than me.”  
Julie’s raw feelings and thoughts hit Marissa hard. She felt her heart sink a little at this, feeling guilty that she had interfered in these people’s lives and influenced them so greatly without intending to. She could understand why Julie seemed to hate her all the time. “I’m sorry I’ve interloped in your group. I didn’t mean to take over. I-I don’t really respond well to aggression and taunting. My whole life I’ve dealt with anger at people by internalizing it, by keeping it bundled up within me. I never really physically reacted to your words because I hid my anger, hoping I could leave the situation instead of dealing with it maturely and communicating. I wasn’t trying to act better than you. I’m really bad at internalizing my problems instead of dealing with them…”   
The short-haired girl looked over at Marissa, seeing her guilty expression as she stared at her feet. Julie was silent as she listened to her disclose her feelings.   
Marissa stopped completely on the swing and bit her lip. “Honestly, I’ve been struggling with my emotions a lot these past couple days. I-I’ve been struggling to get a hold of myself. I feel like I’ve been slipping down a slope that I can’t climb out of. I’ve had these terrible feelings of dread and despair, like something bad is going to happen. I sensed them when you and Susie were in danger. Even afterwards, I feel that the worst is yet to come. I’ve struggled with pessimism in the past and having a bleak outlook on life, but this… this perpetual feeling continues constantly. I think my dreams are reflecting these awful feelings. Especially after that night with the man… I-I felt something take over my body. My reasoning and kindness out the window when he attacked me and you. I-I-I wanted to kill him.” Marissa felt tears come to her eyes when she admitted it. “I was so close to ending his life. I almost did, but the fog that clouded my mind faded and I stopped myself. I’m afraid of myself. I’m afraid I might not stop next time. I don’t know what’s wrong with me and I’m afraid to tell anyone about it.“  
Marissa was cut off when Julie reached over and took her hand in hers. Tears were streaming down her flushed cheeks from admitting this stress and fear she was feeling. Julie looked intently into Marissa’s eyes and squeezed her hand tightly.   
“It’s okay… Calm down Marissa. You’re fine. You’re still you.”   
“How do you know that? What if I-“  
“You’re still you because you’re crying about it, you’re afraid of it-you’re not embracing it. You’re still you because you’re confiding all these deep, troubling thoughts to someone who treated you like shit- someone most people wouldn’t trust.” Julie smiled a little at the end to try and lighten the mood. “That night was horrible, I think we can both agree. I’m sure that the situation just made you act irrationally; it was life or death and I don’t think any different of you: you’re not a killer Marissa. You saved my life and still sparred his. A killer wouldn’t have stopped their knife.”  
Marissa’s tears stopped falling, but she still felt sad, upset at her actions that night. She was quiet and looked away in shame. Julie’s smile fell to a sad frown and she shook her head.   
“Hey... If you ever want to talk about these feelings…you can come to me, or even Frank. He may not look like the nicest guy, but he is really compassionate to people he’s close to.” Julie forced a small smile at the end and nudged Marissa in the side. “He obviously cares a lot about you.”  
Marissa shook her head at Julie. “N-no it’s okay… I don’t want to get in the way of anything… I assume you really like him?”   
Julie coughed a little at this, feeling awkward at this statement. “Um… yeah… well… it’s really complicated.” She trailed off and looked away for a bit.   
Marissa was silent, looking at her feet solemnly. Julie looked back at the solemn girl and let out a sign, shaking her head.   
“Frank and I were partners, lovers back in highschool. I was stuck in a place I didn’t want to be in, and he was the escape I needed. I fell hard for him, I loved being bad with him. We seemed to be inseparable, always together and getting up to no good. One day came around where he and I didn’t see eye-to-eye and we had a big fight. I ignored him for a week and eventually we met up and I broke it off with him. We decided to remain friends afterwards and keep having fun, just not as partners anymore. There were times I wished that I didn’t break it off with Frank, but my damn pride and desire for independence wouldn’t let me admit it. Plus, he seemed to get over us quickly, not bringing it up at all. We didn’t see anyone else and I was content… Then you came along and Frank fell head over heels for you and I got so jealous. It reminded me of the days we were partners and I really missed that…”  
Marissa looked over at Julie and frowned, shaking her head. “I’m sorry, I wasn’t trying to seduce him or anything... I’ve been telling Frank to back off, but he’s so persistent.” She muttered the last part under her breath annoyed  
Julie chuckled at this, nodding to Marissa. “He’s very stubborn. Everyone can agree with you on that.”   
Marissa hummed in agreement and let out a sigh. “I’ll keep telling Frank to back off. I don’t want to bring up sad memories for you.”  
Julie was quiet, unmoving for a few moments. Finally, she shook her head and smiled to herself. “No. It’s fine… You’re really good for Frank, you know.”  
Marissa’s eyes widened at hearing this, not believing what she heard. Julie looked over to Marissa and nodded.   
“I’m being honest with you. Haven’t you noticed Frank is smoking a whole lot less?”   
Marissa frowned and shrugged, not sure. “I-I guess so…”  
“He could go through a pack a day sometimes. Today was the first day that I had heard him turn down a smoke. He’s never put out a cigarette when someone asked him. He’s never not smoked in a room to honor someone’s request. It’s obvious he really likes you. I can tell he’s opening up more, maybe even maturing a bit too.”   
Marissa was silent, listening to Julie’s words as they sunk in. Truly, she had noticed Frank acting more concerned with her well-being. He seemed to be more open about his emotions with her. She believed Julie about his smoking habit improving. She felt her heart flutter a bit as she thought about Frank, that he would decrease his smoking for her, that he would tear down his rough exterior for her.   
Julie smiled at Marissa who was lost in thought, she nodded to herself and poked Marissa on the arm. “Frank and I aren’t together anymore. I’ve no reason to keep you away from him. He’s a good friend and you’re great for him. I may still be a bit jealous, but I don’t want to get in the way of that anymore… I know you’ll leave us someday, but you’ve been really great for our group. You’ve brought us some stability and sanity.”  
The two girls both chuckled at this, nodding in agreement. Julie looked up at the sky and took in a breath of fresh air. “Hey… Everything you told me today… that night…. I’ll keep it a secret.”   
Marissa looked over to Julie who looked back at her seriously.   
“I think we would both prefer to keep today and that night a secret between us. We can still talk about it to each other, but if you agree to keep them secret then I will too.”  
Marissa smiled at Julie and nodded in agreement. “Yes. I would appreciate that a lot… Thanks Julie.”  
Julie reached her foot over to tap Marissa’s. “I know these feelings are scary for you, but it seems like you have these premonitions for a reason.”  
Marissa raised a brow at Julie, confused at her words. “What do you mean?”  
“Well if what you said is true, then it seems these bad feelings you have are signals that we are in a bad situation. They are warnings for you, they guide you to come help us when we really need it.”  
Blinking a few times, Marissa stared at Julie shocked. She looked away and thought about her words. Maybe she was right, or maybe it was a coincidence. Still, the feelings persisted afterwards and seemed to be getting worse. She just hoped that another person wouldn’t be in life-threatening danger. “Hmm… I guess you’re right. Well you helped me most that night.:  
Julie looked at Marissa curiously. “How could I have helped you?”   
“You called out for help and that led me down the stairs where you were.” Marissa explained, smiling at Julie.   
“I didn’t call out for help… The last thing I remember was being jumped by that guy and you suddenly helping me up.” Julie said quietly.   
Marissa shivered when she heard this, the two girls going silent. If Julie wasn’t the one calling out for help, then who was?  
While the ladies sat on the swings, Frank began to approach them. He held up a hand and waved at them from a distance, calling out to them. “Hey ladies! We’re going to eat here soon. You coming?”  
Julie and Marissa looked over to Frank and nodded. They hopped off the swings quietly and headed in his direction.   
Marissa looked over at Julie and spoke quietly. “Thanks for talking and listening to me today.”  
“Thank you for that and more.” Julie smiled at her contently and walked past Frank who waited up for the girls.   
Frank looked over his shoulder surprised, watching Julie walk ahead while Marissa stopped beside Frank.   
“Everything okay between you two?” He asked her, looking back to face Marissa.   
Marissa just smiled a little and nodded, starting to walk again. “Yes. We had a good talk.”  
Frank smiled at this and nodded at Marissa, following beside her back to the hotel rooms. Marissa was silent as she walked beside him, Julie’s words resonating in her mind. Her eyes glanced over at Frank who was humming contently and looking around the area; his deep voice reverberated in her ears. Her eyes noticed his hair since his hood was down, looking at the short brown locks. His jacket was unzipped, showing off the top half of his tattoo and his collarbone. She looked back up to the tall male then away quickly as he turned to look at her.   
“Everything okay?” He asked her, noticing she was a little red and fidgeting anxiously.   
Marissa nodded silently, cursing internally when she realized she was checking him out. Frank stared at her a bit before shrugging and continuing to hum to himself. Her heart began to race, hearing his low timbre seemed to shake her entire being. She hated to admit it, but he was an attractive man, and after hearing what Julie said, she felt curious. Slowly she came to a stop, Frank stopping with her and looking at the young girl confused. She looked down at her feet anxiously and rubbed her arms.   
Frank took a step over to her and reached out, tapping her playfully on the head. “Don’t tell me you got hurt from a swing set or somethin’.”   
She looked up at Frank to see him wink at her lightheartedly. He was standing close to her, close enough to smell a faint aura of fading cologne.   
‘He doesn’t smell like cigarettes at all.’ She remarked in her head, reaffirming what Julie had said to her.   
Frank’s smile faded into a worried frown, leaning over to look at her better. “Hey… What’s-“  
He was cut off by a pair of lips being pressed to his. Marissa had reached out and pulled Frank forward by the collar of his shirt and hoodie. Her eyes were closed tightly, a huge blush on her face as she pressed her lips to his.   
Frank’s eyes widened in shock. He couldn’t believe what was happening. Marissa. Was. Kissing. HIM. Holy fucking shit. This had to be a dream, a hallucination. His hands slowly reached over and touched her hips, ghosting over them so not to scare her away but to still be able to feel her. Instead of figuring out if this is real, kiss her back dammit!   
Frank smiled and closed his eyes, leaning into the kiss and enjoying her soft lips against his. He rested his hands on her lower back, pulling her closer to him as he leaned over for better access. Instead of protesting, Marissa kept up with his lips, releasing his clothes to rest her hands against his chest instead. He tasted of mint gum, not a taste of tobacco in his mouth. Oddly, she enjoyed his chapped lips being pressed against hers; the feeling of his toned muscles under her hands. His towering body seemed to be a wall of protection for her short one, fitting well against her. Her face was flushed red from these thoughts, her body felt like it was on fire as they kissed.   
After a few moments, she pulled back, looking down at the ground because she was too embarrassed to look at his face. She kept her hands against his chest and he did the same around her waist. The two collected their breaths, standing there quietly. Frank broke the silence as he cleared his throat.   
“W-wow… I wasn’t expecting that, not that I’m complaining!” He remarked, looking down at her flustered expression.   
Her face still on fire, she shook her head. “I’m sorry… I don’t know what came over me…” She trailed off, her voice hoarse.   
“No need to be sorry. I loved it.” He chuckled down at her and squeezed her hips playfully.   
“We… should head back to the rooms. The others will be waiting for us.” She stated and pushed him back for some space.   
Frank nodded, a large smile on his face as he watched her walk ahead embarrassed. She was scolding herself for letting her feelings get the better of her.   
‘I don’t know what Julie and Marissa talked about… but I’ll take it!’ He thought to himself, beaming as he followed her back to the hotel rooms, neither of them speaking a word.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M SO SORRY FOR TAKING SO LONG TO WRITE THIS CHAPTER! It's funny how you think you know where it's going and then you add so much more to it. =^=' Anyway... I hope you guys enjoy the chapter. I read through it once so it may have more errors or sloppy writing than usual. I plan to go back to edit and update it when I have more time. I think this story has 3 more chapters in it +/-1, so we are nearing the end!
> 
> Oh! And thank you again for your kudos and lovely comments. I appreciate hearing from you guys and getting feedback. :)


	9. I'm Not Crazy

‘The Entity is a nameless evil that lives in the space between our world and our imagination, the kind of place only revealed in dreams. To obtain its source of sustainment, The Entity reaches out into the hearts of susceptible victims and corrupts them into performing hideous acts of violence, because the only way for it to manifest itself in the real world is through an act of violence so extreme, that it results in fatalities.’   
Tired blue eyes traveled across the pages, reading the horrific text. Under the dim lamp in the corner, they focused in on the words, almost feeling them controlling where her eyes went, unable to notice the slow footsteps creeping up from behind…   
‘Once this event has taken place, The Entity has a handhold into our world, being able to pull people through this weak spot into its own nightmarish construct, the Realms of The Entity.’  
The words on the brown pages seemed to dance across the paper, unable to stay in place the longer they were looked at. The ink itself seemed possessed, breaking the letters apart and swaying in place, their appearance could only be described as terrifying old branches in a dying forest. Still, they were unable to break away from its curious, hypnotic words and scribbles. The being was approaching closer from behind, slowly, surely, they were almost able to reach…  
‘The first victims are the corrupted ones, those pushed to do the deeds that summoned this ancient evil in the first place – the killers.’  
“WHATAYA DOING?!”   
A terrified scream erupted from Marissa’s throat as two hands shook her shoulders from behind, tearing her away from the hypnotizing papers. A fit of laughter resounded in the room from two girls as they watched Marissa hold a hand to her heart. She shot Susie a glare, turning around to face her and Julie that had just entered the room.   
“Jesus Susie! You could have given me a heart attack! I felt like I almost swallowed my tongue!” Marissa scolded the pinkette who was rolling on the hotel bed behind the brunette, laughing it up.   
“I-I’m sorry Marissa! I know you hate pranks, but you didn’t respond or look back at us when we called to you. I couldn’t resist NOT scaring you!” Susie smirked and sat up on the bed as she began to calm down.   
Marissa rolled her eyes at Susie annoyed, muttering something about losing 5 years off her lifespan from that scare. Julie just smiled and reached in the mini fridge, pulling out a drink for herself as she sat on the other bed.   
Susie pouted when Marissa turned back towards the papers to keep reading. “You’re still reading those dumb papers?” She grumbled, crossing her arms upset.   
Marissa nodded, looking back at Susie confused. “Yeah I still am. I was actually able to decipher some of the really difficult parts. Why?”  
Susie shrugged, jumping up from the bed to look over her shoulder at the papers. “I don’t know… They don’t seem that important to read… I’m worried about you is all…”  
Raising a brow, Marissa looked over at Susie who frowned down at her. “Worried about me?”  
She just nodded at first, looking away when Marissa’s gaze met hers. “Yeah… You always seem to go read them all the time… Ever since we took them, you’ve been sleeping less and have been crying out in your sleep… Julie’s noticed it too! Even tonight, you seemed to finish eating dinner really fast and left to go read them. I’m worried they may be cursed and are affecting you…”   
Marissa spaced off at the end, her mind darting back to dinner a few minutes ago. She felt her body internally freeze from awkwardness as she thought of Frank…  
The two walked back in silence, Marissa scolding herself in her head while Frank smirked to himself, checking her out from behind. He could tell she was really torn about her kissing him. Whatever the reason, he couldn’t help but thank his lucky stars that he had finally gotten something from her, even a small kiss.   
Marissa and Frank made their way back to the hotel rooms, they were side by side instead of across from one another. Immediately, the two could smell the tasty aroma of fresh pizza waft smoothly through the air. They peered in the room and saw Joey handing out plates to Julie and Susie. They all smiled over to the two and Susie patted her spot on the bed next to her, wanting Marissa to sit there. The brunette nodded and thanked Joey for the food, sitting beside the pinkette.   
“Aww! Your hair turned out soooo well! I hope you love how it turned out! I know I do.” Susie remarked, using her free hand to play with Marissa’s tresses.   
Marissa nodded and smiled at Susie, finishing a bite before she spoke, but was cut off by Frank.   
“Yeah you did a damn fine job, Susie. I can’t take my eyes off her new look.” Frank sat down on the other bed beside Julie and turned so he was facing the ladies.   
Susie nodded and began chattering on in agreement while Marissa shivered. She noticed Frank’s cocky smirk, his dark eyes staring at her face with a fire in them. His eyes moved up and down her body, checking out her new clothes that complimented her best attributes. She squirmed around in place, feeling very uncomfortable as Frank undressed her with his eyes, his lust and excitement radiating off him. She knew what he was doing, giving her those looks, communicating what he wanted, a reminder of an offer he once gave her. She bit her lip and had to tear her eyes away from his, unable to look at him much longer. She, instead, focused on eating the pizza quickly, ready to leave the uncomfortable aura he was giving off. A part of her regretted kissing him, but a bigger part of her didn’t regret it at all, almost wished that they could have gone further if her logical mind hadn’t returned to her. Frank was sure to be the death of her, she thought, in one way or another.   
……..  
Marissa frowned as she thought about the vibes Frank gave off at supper and sighed. That was the reason she ate her pizza so quickly: she wanted to get out of that overwhelming, yet tempting, aura… right? She was shaken from her thoughts when Susie wrapped two arms around her in a worried hug.   
“Please don’t let the papers take control! You’re stronger than they are!” She cried out, pouting as she squeezed tighter.   
Marissa coughed for air, trying to tell Susie she was fine when Julie spoke up first.   
“You’re cutting off her air, Suze. Let up a little.”  
Susie looked down at Marissa, gasping in realization and letting go. “Ah, I’m sorry! I just saw you leaving this world again and tried to bring you back!”  
“Calm down Susie. I’m not getting possessed I promise.” Marissa smiled awkwardly and reassured the pinkette. “You watch too many horror shows.”  
“Hey! I’d rather be armed with knowledge than be ignorant when I need to help my friends!” Susie pouted, placing her hands against her hips.   
Julie chuckled at her paranoia and shook her head. Meanwhile, Marissa grew silent and looked back at the papers, thinking about Susie’s words. That wasn’t too far off from what she would do. Deep down inside of her, that dark, dreary part felt she had to read them, had to understand them to help her companions. What Julie said on the swings stuck with her, maybe she was seeing and feeling these things because she could get a sense of the future. Maybe this ‘entity’ in these papers was a warning for what was to come. She had been dreaming about the trials that were written in the documents, felt like she had been there herself and seen the entity. She didn’t want them killing innocent people, she had to protect them from that terrible fate.   
‘The Killers are made to do the Entity's bidding, which is to relentlessly hunt and kill the Survivors. Many Killers do not do so willingly, although some are happy to sate their Bloodlust. Some have to be tortured over endless years to be coerced into doing what The Entity wants. The Entity is ever patient and the torture ever more severe. Eventually they all cave in and start the hunt for the Entity.’  
This passage she had just read the night before. These sentences seemed to haunt her, rattle around in her mind as she recalled her dreams. Maybe these papers were cursed… maybe she shouldn’t have read them in the first place.  
Marissa stood up, catching the ladies’ attention. She looked from Julie to Susie and let a small smile come to her face. “You’re right Susie. I need to take a break from these hellish papers. I’m gonna head to the truck and leave them in there for the night. I’ll just take a short break from them and do something else. Out of sight, out of mind.”  
Susie’s look of confusion was taken over by tears of joy. She nodded quickly and hugged Marissa tightly, thanking her for taking a break and believing her. Marissa smiled down at her and patted her back gently. Julie just nodded to the brunette, staying on her bed.   
“You’ll have to ask Frank for the keys to the truck.”  
Marissa had just gathered all the papers when she froze upon hearing this. She frowned I annoyance as she thought about going to see Frank in his room; she could only imagine what ideas he would get.   
“It’s not unlocked? Alright… I’ll go find Frank for the keys.” She mumbled, walking out to the room next door.   
The brunette took a few steps in the hall before stopping just before the door. She felt conflicted with herself, dreading the looks Frank would give her, but also not wanting to be controlled by them either. She took a deep breath and gave herself a mini pep talk before knocking on the door. Surprisingly, Joey was the one who answered.   
“Oh, hey Marissa. What’s up?” He asked, giving her a small smile.   
She returned a smile to the dark-haired boy and shrugged. “Well I was going to put these papers in the truck for the night. Came over to ask if I could have the keys. Is that okay?”   
Before Joey could answer, Frank was at his side looking down at Marissa. Immediately, her smile faded away when she saw him, averting her eyes from his figure.   
“You want to get into the truck? Sure.” Frank smiled down at her, digging around his pockets for the keys.   
She nodded and held out a hand to him, waiting for the keys. “Thank-“  
Marissa stopped when Frank reached out and grabbed her hand. “I’ll come with you to unlock it. Don’t want you taking the keys and driving off now.” His eyes seemed to match the smirk on his face.   
Frank stepped out of the room, holding her hand and starting to walk off with her being dragged along.   
“I won’t drive off, I promise! You know I don’t know how to drive a stick anyway.” She grumbled as Joey watched them walk off, shrugging to himself and closing the door behind him.   
Frank chuckled a little, leading her along to the main lobby. He shrugged, not saying much as they finally made it to the old truck. He let go of her hand and focused on unlocking the truck door.   
“I know you wouldn’t have driven off… but I wanted to talk in private about earlier.” Frank had his back to Marissa who stood behind him patiently.   
Her eyes widened a little at this and she quickly looked away, realizing she was staring at his broad shoulders and back. She took a step back, hugging the papers to her body as she looked away from him.   
Frank was met with silence, so he looked over his shoulder at her confused. “Is that okay?”  
She frowned a bit, still not looking at him, unable to meet his eyes. “I don’t know what you want to talk about… It was just an accident… Something came over me and I wasn’t thinking clearly and-“  
Frank shook his head at her and let out a sigh, cutting her off from her excuses. “See? This is why I wanted to talk… I don’t want you avoiding me because of what happened. I think you’re coming up with a million excuses but not accepting the reality behind it.”  
She pouted, finally looking at him in curiosity and annoyance. “And what is that?”  
“You like me. You want me. You’re attracted to me. You told me that last time we were at a hotel, remember?” Frank formed a small, sly smile as he leaned over her shorter figure.   
Marissa’s face blushed pink and she quickly turned around to hide it. “N-nuh uh! You’re wrong.” She said back, the stubbornness in her voice becoming obvious.   
Frank smirked at this. Instead of arguing back, he stepped closer, close enough so that when he leaned over he could spoon her body and hold her back against his chest. He rested his face against the crook of her neck, taking in her scent as he held her against him, sternly yet gently.   
Marissa froze as she felt Frank press up against her, her face blushing a mad shade of red in contrast to her pale skin. She clenched the papers against her chest, hoping that their noise and touch could bring her some sanity and clear-headedness as Frank began to whisper dirty things in her ear. She wanted to yell at him, tell him to back off and run to Susie for safety, but rationality was long gone, far off into space when Frank began to grind against her bum.   
Frank smirked beside her ear, noticing she wasn’t complaining or struggling against him. His left arm moved so it crossed her chest and allowed him to hold her exposed arm, feeling her soft porcelain skin against his calloused fingers. His right arm moved down to her left hip, right at her waist. He rubbed soft circles against her shorts, starting to slowly creep down and reach her mid thighs were her skin greeted him. He felt her shudder as his fingers grazed over her delicate skin, squeezing her thick thigh playfully.  
She whimpered, clutching the papers tightly between her fingers as Frank moved her short hair to the side for better access.   
“Mmm… Susie really did do a fuckin’ great job… I do miss your long hair, but I’ll be damned if you don’t look so cute with your short locks.” His hot breath ghosted the inside of her ear, making her shiver and move her head away for space.   
Marissa whined as Frank’s low voice continued to whisper in her ear, her voice sent shivers down his spine. Suddenly, Frank moved his fingers from her outer thigh and slid them between her legs. She gasped and closed her legs quickly, embarrassed he was so close to her personal areas.   
Frank continued murmuring in her ear, using his hand to massage her legs, hoping to help her relax and, quite literally, open up to him. “Mm… just let me in… Your pretty little pussy will be begging for my fingers as they fuck you so hard, you’ll sleep for days.”   
Marissa cried out, her legs shaking in anticipation as they slowly began to open. Frank smirked and moved his legs between them, forcing them apart wider so he had easy access to her sensitive area. His hand moved to her inner hips, rubbing them gently then stopping. He moved his hand so it hovered over the zipper of her shorts, not daring to touch her yet. He waited for a few moments, waited for her protests or shoves. Nothing.   
It took everything left in his composure to murmur in her ear. “Do you want this?”  
Marissa’s heart pounded in her chest, her whole body felt aflame as she felt Frank’s pressed against hers. She knew this was wrong, that they should stop right here and now, but damn she couldn’t help herself. Frank’s low timbre vibrating in her ear, the sensual grinding against her bum, his calloused fingers massaging her skin, it all felt so good and she wanted it, badly. Her revolve out the window, she nodded slowly to him. Frank waited for a while, then cupped her womanhood with his large hand, rubbing his fingers against her shorts where her lips lie in anticipation underneath.   
Marissa cried out, resting her head back against his right shoulder for stability as he rubbed circles against her private areas. Her mind was fogging with lust, causing her body to begin to rock back against his hardening manhood as his fingers pressed up into her, her shorts the only protection stopping him from entering her. Frank groaned in her ear, grinding back against her roughly as he brought his thumb up and began rubbing her clit through her shorts, setting her further off the edge. A wet, warm muscle began licking her neck; his saliva hot, but his piercing cool against her flaming skin.   
This was the last straw for her. She dropped all the papers on the ground and mustered up enough strength to push herself off Frank then spin around to face him. Frank was cut off guard as Marissa turned toward him, expecting her to have reached her limit of what she would let him do to her. To his surprise, she pulled him in for a sloppy kiss, standing on her tip-toes to try and reach him better, beginning to run her fingers through his hair. Frank smirked in the kiss and leaned over for better access, wrapping his arms around her smaller form and pulling her body against his. She felt his erection growing by the second, feeling his steel press against her soft pussy as they began to grind into one another.   
A wet tongue began licking her lips, asking, no, begging for entrance into her wet cavern as they kissed. Marissa slowly parted her lips and felt the immediate entrance of Frank’s slippery tongue slide inside her. Right away, she felt his piercing prod and poke around her mouth, exploring her damp cavern as her tongue was forced down. His dominance asserted, he pulled it back enough to poke her tongue, wanting her to come play and have as much fun as he was. Instantly, she poked back, starting a tongue war with Frank as his hands moved down to squeeze her butt roughly, feeling the nice shape under his grasp.   
The two finally broke away to gasp for air, a string of saliva connecting them together even though they were apart. Frank’s lust filled eyes looked down at Marissa, watching her heated face moan for him. Marissa finally began to open her eyes, looking up at Frank who had taken her so far off the deep end. Her eyes were squinted at first, barely able to look at Frank as her lids became heavy from lust. She saw his red face, his eyes that spoke of lust, his forehead that shone from sweat, his short hair that stood up at the top from her hands playing with it…  
Immediately, her eyes widened in fear. It felt like someone had dumped a tub of ice water on her naked body. Her blue eyes stared in fear as she looked just above Frank’s head at four long, pointy, black tendrils that seemed to form right behind him. They twitched around in place before seeming to notice that she could see them. Suddenly, they shot forward, jabbing at her with lighting fast speed. Marissa screamed and fell back on the cement, holding her hands up to shield her from the attack.  
Frank had noticed the change in her expression right away, looking at the brunette confused as she stared in horror, not seemingly at him, but above him. He was about to ask her what was wrong when she held up her hands and fell back, screaming bloody murder. Swiftly, he knelt down beside her and reached out his hands, unsure of what was going on.   
“What’s wrong?!”  
“There-there was a monster! Black tentacles that attacked me! I swear it! I’m not crazy! I’m not crazy! I’m not crazy I swear!” She began to cry and fuss in hysterics, holding her hands against her face as she bawled into her palms.   
Frank pulled Marissa close to him, trying to comfort the startled girl. He looked over his shoulder, trying to see what she saw, but nothing was there. As she cried in his arms, he looked down at the papers on the ground, one of them standing out in particular: one that had black tentacles drawn in the corners. He stared at the page, in anger and fear that it was affecting her this badly.   
Slowly, Frank patted her back and began to whisper comforting things in her ear. She sobbed and huddled against him for protection, repeating that she wasn’t crazy. Frank stood up, picking Marissa up in his arms bridal style.   
“I believe you… You’re done reading those documents. We leave them here at this hotel, that’s final.” He demanded sternly.   
Marissa’s sobs quieted down a little, yet she nodded in agreement. Frank let out a sigh of relief and started walking back to the hotel room, purposely stepping on the pages as he walked by. He looked over his shoulder, trying one last time to see what she saw. Nothing. A part of him wanted to say she was lying, but another part had a sinking feeling she wasn’t hallucinating. Right now, he was going to take her back to the room and force her to turn in early while he burned those damn papers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyo! Bet you were surprised I updated so soon. Lol! I had the time and motivation to write the next chapter so here ya go. Not as long as my chapters usually are, but I think it should suffice. :) 
> 
> Btw, all the text about the entity is from the wiki article. Not my own words!
> 
> Thanks for reading and all the support you've shown me and I hope you enjoyed the chapter!


	10. Light vs Dark

The low, quick, pitter-patter of a heartbeat was deafening to the brunette who was once again, whisked away to the hellish ski resort. She groaned in annoyance, frustrated that she was still suffering from the same repeating nightmare. Still… she was struck with concern, awaiting in fear for the new terror that would unfold before her helpless form. No matter how many times she tried to help, to intervene, she couldn’t. She really was a ghost, a fly on the wall, watching in horror from afar.  
Slowly, the woman walked past the same area of distraught walls and barrels of fire, moving her way towards the main lodge. Her legs seemed to drag, dreading what would be around the corner of the building. She heard the rickety noises of a generator partially started and then a scream from the other side of the wall. Swallowing, she gave herself a moment of resolve, one last moment of sanity before she stepped out from the building. Her eyes met with a dark-haired girl in deep blue clothes laying on the ground with a figure standing above them; it was obvious the figure was Julie based on the smiling mask and lengthy brown hair peeking out from her hood... wait what?  
Marissa’s eyebrows furrowed in confusion as she looked her friend up and down. She was sure that was Julie, her getup was similar, and her body was more feminine than Frank’s could be. It had to be her and yet, her short, pixie-cut seemed to be longer here, reaching the ends of her shoulders as she looked down at the whimpering girl below her. Marissa didn’t have much time to think about it when Julie suddenly raised her knife, ready to attack.  
The young woman looked up at the killer in horror, she began crawling away as fast as she could when Julie began to glow gold, a faint aura around her. As soon as the aura appeared, it left and Julie raised her knife, swinging fiercely, cutting the back of her head. The girl cried out and got up on her knees to try and protect herself as Julie flipped the knife so it faced down towards her victim. As swift as before, the blade stabbed down, connecting with the forearm of the young woman. The black-haired girl took this opportunity to hold the blade in place and use her adrenaline to shove the killer back, hoping to get space between them and a few seconds more of time.  
A feminine voice cried out in surprise as she was shoved back. Julie caught herself before falling, grunting in annoyance as she watched the woman fall down roughly, hitting the ground face-first. As the injured girl caught her breath, Julie raised her hand above her head, and swung down hard, stabbing her in the ankle. The victim screamed in agony as she was dragged back to Julie by the bloody knife in her leg. Julie tugged the weak girl back until she was directly below her form. She sat down on top of the black-haired girl and drove her knife deep within her chest, twisting it around for good measure. The knife still in the victim’s body, it was dragged down from the chest to the lower stomach and pulled out of the newly deceased corpse, blood gushing everywhere. Julie stood up and used her jacket to wipe off the bloodied knife against her stomach. One final look down at the girl before she turned the other way and began to walk off.  
“No one can save you now…” Julie’s voice barely above a whisper as she dashed away from the scene, leaving the distraught brunette behind with the corpse.  
Marissa simply stood in place, paralyzed in fear at the kill that just took place in front of her. Her legs that would have normally taken off running, started shaking beneath her. Unable to hold her up anymore, they collapsed so she fell to her knees. Even so, her jaded, blue eyes stared at the body that bled out silently, alone. Her arms came up to her sides and she began to hold herself tightly, trying to give even an ounce of comfort as she shook violently.  
Brown hair fell before her face, covering her eyes as she panicked silently on the ground. Anxiety and helplessness began to drown her emotions, pulling her deep into the abyss of her dark thoughts she tried so hard to avoid. She felt those dark thoughts creeping inside her head almost like a mist was permeating through her thoughts; with each dream, they seemed to get worse, stronger. Her rational, hopeful thoughts did battle against the dark pessimistic ones.  
this isn’t real…  
THIS IS REAL. DREAMS ARE MERELY A DENIAL OF REALITY.  
…how could this happen?  
THIS IS BECAUSE OF YOU. YOU COULDN’T SAVE THEM WHEN THEY NEEDED IT MOST.  
what could I have done to stop this?  
ACCEPT FATE. THERE’S NOTHING YOU CAN DO TO CHANGE IT.  
no… I can help…  
YOU’RE WEAK. YOU CAN’T EVEN HELP YOURSELF.  
…i’m better…  
THAT SOON WILL FADE.  
…….is there truly no hope?  
YOU ALREADY KNOW THE ANSWER.  
…the answer…  
YOU ARE NO ONE. NOTHING. JUST END THE MISERY NOW AND SAVE EVERYONE THE TROUBLE.

I’m here for you, okay?  
Marissa’s troubled thoughts were suddenly brought to silence as Frank’s words surfaced in her mind. She remembered back to the conversation they had in the truck early that morning. She recalled his calming voice, the genuine concern he showed for her well-being. It pushed away her dark, insecure thoughts and gave her peace of mind. It was enough to stop her shaking, to give her the courage to focus on her surroundings. She felt an evil aura about her, circling her form as she came back to her senses. She had felt this before, ever since she started reading those cursed papers.  
Slowly, she turned her head around to face the evil presence behind her. Time seemed to halt in the ski resort, not a single noise was heard, only silence and it was deafening. The dark area seemed impassable, no light breaking through the blackness before her. She waited, watched as the black mist seemed to swirl and twist, as if it were alive. Suddenly, dark tentacles seemed to form from the darkness before her. There was no body, no single form to get a clear view of what it even was. It seemed that the being… this entity was composed solely of shadow. Marissa felt fear possess her body, creeping through her veins; still, Frank’s words fueled her with courage, determination to face this beast as she stood.  
“You have no power over me. You’re just a bad nightmare I’ll wake up from.”  
Her daring words were answered with silence; still, she stared at the entity with resolve and determination.  
“You can’t scare me anymore. I won’t let you.”  
The tendrils seemed to jitter a bit, still staying in place as it listened to her. She waited a bit, watching the tentacles squirm, the sharp end pointing towards her small form. The entity remained, seemly waiting for her next move. Marissa glared at the being and turned her back to it, starting to walk away to prove a point. Within a second, it appeared before her, black tendrils jabbing at her to prevent Marissa from moving any further.  
“What? What do you want?!” She cried out, getting annoyed with its perseverance.  
Suddenly, it froze in place. Marissa’s courage seemed to flee as the aura changed, grew dark with malice. Something began to appear from the darkness under the tentacles. Marissa watched in fear and anticipation, waiting as the black fog swirled and then stopped. Four familiar figures in masks stood in the wake of the dark fog. Realizing what this meant, Marissa felt anger and fear shake her to the core, her peaceful resolve gone.  
“You can’t have them! I won’t let you take them to your sick trials!” She screamed, her eyes flashed with rage, taking a brave step towards the entity.  
Without a body, without a face, without a mouth-it chuckled. It resonated confidence and power as it wrapped its tentacles around the four teens, pulling their stationary forms into the darkness.  
“You’ll have to go through me if you want to get to them!”  
The entity continued to pull the four into the darkness, so far that it sucked its tentacles in with them, almost completely faded away. Blue eyes glared at the entity in hatred, ignoring the fact that the dream, no, vision… was fading away. As the images of the teens disappeared before her, the brunette stood in impenetrable darkness, in quiet solitude. She waited for her to awaken, to escape this nightmare. A flash and loud boom shattered the darkness, hitting her roughly in the chest and sending her falling back. The force of the invisible hit forced all the air out of her lungs, sending pain throughout her whole body. She kept falling; by now she should have hit the ground. Yet, still she felt her heart race as she fell downwards into the darkness.  
‘Why am I not waking up? What is this unbearable pain in my chest?’ She pondered, unable to move her body even an inch.  
Tears fell down her face, now more than ever, she was truly alone with her thoughts, her biggest fears.  
‘I don’t want to die alone…’  
Meanwhile… Susie and Julie watched Marissa in horror as she muttered in her sleep. Her face was torn between fear and anger, her fists clenched tightly as she squirmed around. Susie reached out and pried her fingers apart so she could hold her hand. The pinkette felt tears flood her eyes, unable to hold them back as she watched her friend suffer in her sleep once again.  
“She won’t wake up… No matter what I try…” Susie murmured, still trying to shake Marissa awake from her torment. “It’s never been this bad. I don’t know what to do Julie…”  
Tears of sorrow streamed down Susie’s face, she couldn’t bear to watch her friend suffer much longer. Slowly, she moved Marissa’s hand to rest against her forehead, closing her eyes as she tried to think of what to do. “Please wake up… Please Marissa… I can’t watch you suffer any longer… Please…”  
Julie’s heart fell in sorrow as she listened to Susie’s pleas. She had just returned from helping the boys load up the truck, she certainly wasn’t expecting to come back to the room to see Marissa shaking on the bed and Susie crying beside her. Julie looked between Susie and Marissa, thinking, debating. Finally, she turned towards Susie and grabbed her free hand, catching her attention. Blue, teary eyes looked at green, determined ones. Her other hand grabbed Marissa’s fist, unraveling it to hold hers as well.  
“Marissa come back to us! You can wake up! Come on you’re stronger than this! You helped me before so…I’m going to help you now, okay! So don’t you give up!”  
Julie’s words of support stunned Susie. She watched Julie squeeze Marissa’s hand and shout words of encouragement, of hope. After a few moments, Susie turned back to look at Marissa. She frowned in determination and swallowed the lump in her throat so she could speak.  
“Come back Marissa, Please! You’ve been through worse than this! You saved my life once, remember?! This is nothing compared to that!”  
…The suffocating darkness around Marissa kept pulling her weak form deeper into the shadows, into the endless vast of nothingness she was stuck in. Those dark thoughts from before returned with even greater malice, worse intentions.  
YOU SHOULD HAVE ENDED THIS A LONG TIME AGO. NOW YOU’RE STUCK.  
HOW PATHETIC. THIS COULDN’T GET MUCH WORSE.  
WHAT’S THE POINT IN EVEN HANGING ON? EVERYTHING IS JUST PAIN AND TORMENT NOW.  
REGRET EVERYTHING YET?  
come…back…  
A quiet voice called through the darkness. Marissa slowly opened her eyes; even though she was unable to see anything, she felt a presence, no, two… with her.  
please… come back…  
Two familiar female voices called out to her in the darkness, once again, she was filled with hope.  
‘Do I regret everything?’ She pondered with the thought.  
Memories of her last week with the troubled adolescents flashed through her mind. She thought back to the very beginning, where the group saved her life and brought her along with them. She thought back to the time they first took her along with them on their thieving mission. She thought back to the old man who had Susie at gunpoint, how she saved her friend’s life. She thought back to the night Julie first showed her compassion, before leading up to the two disclosing their insecurities and becoming closer. She thought back to Joey who helped pick up litter with her and the day he and Frank taught her how to use a knife. Frank… She thought back to the night where Frank and her cried under the streetlight together; the night she had saved Julie and Frank was by her side comforting her through the pain; the early mornings where they talked about their issues and feelings; …the day when she kissed Frank…  
“No. I don’t regret a single second.” She spoke out loud.  
The voices that she heard before were getting louder and, at the same time, she felt sensation come back to her body, the feeling of falling had stopped…  
Susie and Julie froze, noticing Marissa had stopped shaking and muttering in her sleep. Her face that was once filled with disdain and pain had softened and become peaceful. The two watched quietly, waiting to see what would happen next. Susie let go of Julie’s hand and moved it to Marissa’s wrist. Julie raised a brow at Susie who stared at Marissa intently. After a few moments, she looked back at Julie and sniffled.  
“I checked her pulse… she’s still breathing.”  
If Julie wasn’t holding Marissa’s hand, she would have facepalmed. In truth, Susie’s concern for her friends was unrivaled, yet she had these paranoid moments when her worry clouded her logic, her pessimism made her expect the worst.  
Abruptly, Marissa groaned and began to open her eyes. It took a moment to get used to the light of the room, until she realized that Susie and Julie were beside her, looking down at her worriedly while holding each of her hands.  
“Are you two okay?” She murmured, noticing their faces were full of worry.  
“Are WE okay?! You’ve been thrashing around in your sleep, never waking up! Are YOU okay?!” Julie grumbled out in annoyance, still, a feeling of relief washed over her being.  
“Oh… I’m sorry…” Marissa looked at Julie before gasping as arms wrapped tightly around her shoulders and pink was all she could see.  
“I’M SO GLAD YOU’RE AWAKE! I WAS SO WORRIED! DON’T DO THAT TO ME AGAIN!” Susie cried out, sobbing from relief as she held her friend close.  
Marissa grunted at Susie’s tight embrace but couldn’t hide her smile. She hugged her back and shook her head. “I’m sorry. I promise it won’t happen again.”  
Slowly, she looked over to Julie, then back towards Susie who hugged her so tightly she couldn’t look down at her face. “Thank you both…”  
Julie cocked a brow at this, confused. “What? Why thank us?”  
Marissa simply looked over at Julie and gave her a warm smile; she didn’t speak a single word, yet Julie could feel the gratitude radiate off her form. Julie shrugged and looked away, deciding not to push the topic any further. The group would be leaving soon anyway.  
…………..  
After, finally convincing Susie that she was alright, Marissa took a bag of clothes and her few belongings to the truck, helping the others load the truck. She stopped and looked at the spot the truck was parked in, thinking back to the previous night. She felt a shiver run down her spine as she recalled her hallucinations, the fear of the entity she read about in those accursed papers. A frown of disappointment crept on her face. How she could let herself become so obsessed with them was beyond her. She should have noticed how it was changing her right away, yet it took her an inescapable nightmare to realize it.  
Marissa let out a sigh of annoyance and shook her head, scolding herself in her mind. She didn’t notice as Frank approached her from behind. Suddenly, her hair was being disheveled as Frank rubbed the top of her head quickly from behind. She groaned and reached up to grab his arm to stop him, he stopped before she could grab him.  
“For someone who slept for so long, you’re pretty out of it.” He remarked, his eyes sparkled with playfulness as he looked down at her.  
Marissa pouted, dropping the bag beside her to fix her short, tangled tresses. “Wow word spreads fast between you guys.”  
Frank just nodded at her, his playfulness faded as he became more serious. “We don’t keep secrets between each other.”  
The brunette paused, looking over to him worriedly as Frank frowned back at her. After a moment, he let out a sigh and shook his head.  
“So even after burning those damned papers, they are still fucking with you… Dammit!” He cursed under his breath.  
Marissa frowned at this, “You burned them?”  
Frank just nodded, shrugging at her. “Had to make sure they wouldn’t end up in your hands again.”  
Marissa rolled her eyes and looked away. ‘A part of me wishes he didn’t burn them after what I just dreamed about… but I guess it is for the best in the end.’  
Dark brown eyes examined the brunette before him. Frank watched as Marissa went back to fixing her hair when he suddenly walked past her and opened the truck door. She flinched at this, feeling Frank bump shoulder with her aggressively as he strode by. She noticed a serious look on his face, it looked between a mix of anger and determination. Frank didn’t seem to be his usual self. She had expected a cocky, flirting adolescent after what had happened the night before, not a serious angry one.  
Curiosity got the best of her and she walked by Frank who was sitting in the driver’s seat, starting the old, rickety truck.  
“Hey… is something wrong? You seem really on-edge today.”  
Frank stopped turning the key so the truck was silent once again. He glanced over at the woman, his face unchanging from the frown he had before. “Nothing you need to worry about.”  
Marissa raised a brow at this, he was obviously avoiding telling her something important. “Come on Frank. You expect me to believe that? I know you guys are bringing me along, so I do have this to worry about.”  
Frank avoided her gaze, his frown growing and his anxiety overwhelming to the empathetic girl. Marissa brought a smile to her face and reached out, resting a hand against his arm.  
“I’m here for you, okay?”  
His frown morphed into a look of surprise as he looked down at the brunette. His guilt overcame him until he let out a sigh.  
“We’re going home…”  
Marissa raised a brow in confusion at this. “Home?”  
He nodded, looking down at her seriously. “Yes... Ormond. Our hometown where we all met each other.”  
Marissa’s eyes widened in shock, she looked at him inquisitively. “Oh okay… Is there a particular reason why we’re heading there?”  
Frank’s face turned dark, an ominous aura about him as he grew silent. He looked away from her for a while before he finally spoke up. “That asshole is back there…”  
Marissa swallowed heavily after hearing that. She feared the worse, still, she pressed further. “Who?”  
“Clive Andrews. My last foster father and the biggest piece of shit you’ll ever meet.” He explained, spitting the man’s name out bitterly. “I should have taken care of him a long time ago…”  
Marissa flinched, her eyes widening in fear at the implications he was making. “What do you mean? You’re not going to kill him… are you?”  
Frank’s eyes shot over to Marissa, glaring at her darkly. “He SHOULD have been my first victim. Killing that bastard is long overdue. After I kill him, I’ll get to close that shitty chapter of my life for good.”  
“Frank please… don’t murder that man. He doesn’t-“  
“He doesn’t deserve it?! You don’t know shit about that fucker! He may have been my foster parent, but he was no father! That bastard only cared about getting money to feed his addiction to alcohol. I can’t remember how many nights I came home late to him passed out drunk on the couch or him yelling like a maniac and throwing bottles at me! I took care of myself because I HAD TO. I cooked for myself, I cleaned my own clothes, I drove myself around. I did everything because he didn’t give two shits about me. So you tell me, right now, that he doesn’t deserve a knife through the throat because he’s deserved it since day one.”  
Marissa felt tears sting her eyes as Frank yelled at her, disclosing a very personal and painful past. For a while, she had wondered about Frank’s past, everyone’s past. It was obvious he had been through the rough, been broken. She wondered if this man wasn’t the only one that had abused or neglected Frank in his past.  
“I’m sorry Frank… That’s truly awful. No one should have to go through that…” She murmured through quiet sobs.  
Frank’s anger calmed down a bit, but he still glared at her, his thoughts of his foster father tormenting his mind.  
“Still… you shouldn’t kill him. Taking revenge will only make you feel worse. It won’t change the past…” She whispered, looking down, expecting him to yell again.  
“This isn’t about changing the past!” Frank immediately boomed, jumping down from the truck to loom over her shorter form. “Who knows how many other kids he’s fostered just for the money? How many other lives he’s ruined? He can’t hold a job, he’s drinking himself to death, he’s useless-a waste of space. Ever since we left Ormond, I’ve felt guilty about letting him live. I had a million reasons to kill him, and yet didn’t. I have to right that. If I kill him, I’ll feel that, for once in my life, I’ll have gotten justice. The pain will go away!”  
Marissa sniffled, looking away and shaking her head at Frank who was standing above her angrily. “The pain will always be there… this won’t change it Frank… Please...Let go…”  
Frank was silent, glaring down at the woman who hid her face behind her hair. He saw how small she had gotten, how meek she became because of him. He groaned and held a hand to his face. He didn’t want to upset her, this was why he didn’t want to tell her in the first place, but damn if she didn’t make him open up so much, this would be much easier.  
“Look… this is my battle, this is my demon I’ve been struggling with for a while. If I expect to heal and become a better person, I need to do this.” Frank took a deep breath before raising his hands and resting them on her shoulders. “After this, I’ll have a fresh start. I need to cut the hatred out of my life and replace it with something healthy like kindness or compassion.”  
Marissa’s eyes were still looking at the ground, unable to meet his gaze. Suddenly, she felt a hand gently hold her chin, moving it to meet a gaze of sincerity. Her blue eyes of doubt met dark ones filled with optimism. Frank smiled at her when her eyes met his. He wrapped his other arm around her form and pulled her body against his.  
“Hey. You’ve brought a lot of good in my life since then. I want that to continue without anything holding me back.”  
Marissa’s face was still frowning with doubt and sadness as Frank smiled down at her. He let out a sigh and shook his head. ‘She’s so stubborn… I wish she would just agree with me that this was best. It would make things so much easier…’  
“This isn’t right Frank… No one should kill another person…” She muttered, hoping he would just agree with her and put this crazy idea behind them.  
“Then what was your reason?”  
Marissa’s eyes widened in surprised and confusion at Frank’s question. She raised a brow in consternation as Frank looked down at her seriously.  
“That night at the abandoned circus… the knife Joey gave you had blood on it-so much it soaked through your pocket.”  
Marissa froze, feeling her whole body shiver in memory of the serial killer lurking in the shadows, trying to hurt Julie and her. Her voice caught in her throat, unable to speak, she just shook her head at him. Frank frowned, looking at her silent form avert her gazes with him.  
Letting out a sigh, he shook his head. “Its obvious something happened that night. What shocks me most is that neither you or Julie have fessed up yet, but I trust Julie. If it was something I needed to know, she would have told me. Still it makes me really curious why your knife was so bloody.”  
Still, Marissa was silent, not saying a thing. She had flashbacks here and there of her stabbing the man. She would think of it when the cold knife in her pocket would rub against her skin. She had truly felt a darkness she never knew before, a darkness she couldn’t control. All her reasoning and mercy flew out the window when that man threatened Julie and her. Was it because she felt triggered from the man who tried raping her a week ago or something darker inside of her? Still, to this day, she was trying to figure it out.  
Frank noticed how gloomy she had gotten and shook his head. He pulled her against his body in a hug, resting his chin against her shoulder. “Whatever happened I’ll let it go… I’m just glad you are both okay. I just… I’ve been around the block once or twice. I’ve seen and done some bad shit. Sometimes you gotta fight fire with fire or nothing ever changes.”  
Marissa pushed Frank back a bit so she could look up into his eyes. A frown on her face, she sighed. “I still don’t believe killing him is justified… I can only hope you’ll change your mind.”  
Frank looked down at the woman who looked back at him with a look of desperation. As much as her determination and stubbornness should have annoyed him, he felt something flutter in his chest-a feeling of appreciation, like someone was looking at him for him instead of his sins. He did admire her words and advice, a part of him wished he could just let it go, forget about him. He knew, in this messed up way, that he had to kill to heal.  
“Hey… are you guys okay?” Joey was walking towards the truck with the last of their supplies and noticed the two staring at each other with frowns on their faces.  
Frank looked over to Joey and nodded, forcing a small smile. “Yeah. Are we all already to head out?”  
Joey nodded, looking over his shoulder towards the front door. “The girls are going over their room one last time, but they’re ready too.”  
“Great. I’ll start the truck.” Frank shook a bit, his anxiousness coming back as he turned away from Marissa and focused on the truck instead.  
Marissa looked between the boys then lowered her head, thinking about Frank’s words. ‘Please… don’t let this man control and hurt you anymore…’ She thought.  
As soon as the girls rejoined the group, the young adults hopped in the rusty truck, peeling out from the old hotel and driving down the gravel road. Marissa leaned against the window, looking out at the scenery that flew by. It appeared to have snowed last night because there was a small layer of white flakes on the signs and trees that went by. One sign caught her attention as Frank drove the group on ahead. Instead of the cold weather sending shivers down her spine, a single sign with the faded words: Ormond 20 miles did.  
That familiar premonition of dread and worry was back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HEY I'M ALIVE! So sorry this took so long to be written. I think it's a mix of being busy and being sad the story is almost over. I also didn't realize this story is 96 pages and 52,000 words long! Jeez Louise! ^_^'  
> As always, thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. I hope I caught my mistakes. I just really wanted to post something for you guys since you seem to enjoy the story. :) And thanks for all the kudos and love. You guys are awesome~


	11. Hopes and Dreams

A metal, rectangle of green came and went as the truck of people flew down the old highway. Many of them had greeted the group, counting down the time they would take to reach their current destination. The kids waited silently in anticipation, some deciding to sharpen their weapons while others looked outside at the familiar environment that passed by.   
The short haired brunette stared out the window, looking at the open fields and few, single houses that passed her by on the lonely lands. Each mile marker felt like an ominous second counting down until they would reach their demise. Frank and the group had been unusually silent as they traveled this last leg. She could only assume that bad memories and anxiousness was haunting them as they approached the small town that was only 4 miles away now.   
Marissa flinched as her eyes met the mile marker in the distance. A crow was perched on the snowy sign, seeming to face and follow the group as they went by. Maybe she was going insane; it really was too fast to tell. This last leg of the trip, she had felt that she was “seeing things” a lot, felt like invisible eyes were on her, watching and waiting.   
“You don’t need to worry so much… this won’t take long.” A feminine voice tore Marissa from her thoughts.  
Blue eyes glanced over and met green ones. Julie watched and looked Marissa over, she noticed how tired her eyes had become, how solemn her face was, how defeated her posture seemed to be. Marissa was radiating a gloomy, blue aura that all the passengers could feel, even in the back.   
Marissa simply nodded and looked away, not saying a word as her gaze caught sight of a black anomaly lurking around the 3-mile marker. She moved a hand and rested her forehead against it, covering her eyes with her thin digits so she could shield herself from the ominous hallucinations plaguing her sight.   
……..  
Around a mile outside of Ormond, the group pulled over to a small gas station. All five of the vagabonds hopped out, Joey and Marissa stayed behind to fill up the truck while the other three made their way inside. The whole area seemed gloomy. The sun was hidden behind the clouds, with few noises of wildlife or humans in the desolate, cold area. Marissa was silent as she stood beside the truck, resting her shoulder and head against the old metal. She peered inside the dirty glass at the four masks laying in the seat of the truck, eagerly waiting their upcoming use. Their faces and smiles had always been unsettling to her, but at this time, the way the masks grinned back at her, Marissa wanted to throw up, their animosity overwhelming her.   
“I know you’re not a fan of this, but Frank’s been talking about this day for a long time.” Joey spoke up, looking over at the quiet girl. “You don’t have to come along. We will take care of the mission then be outta there before you know it.”  
The brunette spared a glance over at the young man. Before her, was not Joey, but someone with his mask and knife wearing his bloodied clothes. Her eyes were locked on to the killer before her, an eerily familiar sense of dread filled her being as she remembered her nightmares. She blinked, and the hallucination faded, seeing the kind young man before her looking back with concerned dark eyes. Marissa swallowed heavily, then forced a small smile.   
“Thanks. I appreciate that. I’m sure that this feeling will pass when it’s all over. I’m just… I worry about you guys is all.” She whispered back and looked back to the four deadly masks.   
Meanwhile….  
While Joey and Marissa were outside pumping gas, the trio strode inside the gas station, passing a few old, rusty cars that were parked near the entrance. Frank’s gaze caught an old red beater, the old kind that you had to physically open the headlights for them to turn on. He glared at the car, bad memories coming back to him at the familiar make and model of the old car.   
Julie held open the door for Susie and Frank to go inside, following them in after. The gas station was mostly empty aside from a truck driver getting coffee, the single employee behind the counter and now the three of them. Susie walked over to the energy drinks while Julie went up to the counter, buying some cigarettes. Frank stopped by the chips section and turned around, looking back at the car that seemed to mock him with each glance. He cursed under his breath and moved his hand to feel his hunting knife through his pocket. He let out a breath and relaxed a bit, feeling reassurance and comfort from the silver object.   
The noise of someone else entering the gas station rung inside the store, signaling everyone. The bell distracted Frank from the snacks, causing him to glance over his shoulder, expecting to see Joey and Marissa enter. His eyes widened in surprise and rage. A middle-aged man had entered, carrying an empty tank of gas. The man was pale, his hair balding on top. He wore a dirty wife-beater that barely covered his protruding gut. He wore baggy sweatpants and tattered shoes that seemed to be stained of cigarette smoke. He had a lit cigarette in his mouth and a sleeve of tattoo on his arms.   
“Hey Ralph I need a refill of my tank and three bottles of Jameson.” The gruffy man strode over to the counter beside Julie, walking past the aisle that Frank was in.   
The man noticed someone was in the aisle and glanced over with half-lidded eyes. His tired gaze was met with a glare of hatred and disdain. Suddenly, he stopped in place, staring back at Frank, his eyes woke with fear when he realized who was staring back at him.   
“What the fuck? Frank Morrison?” He grumbled out, turning to face the adolescent who clenched his fists tightly when he spoke.  
“Clive Andrews…” Frank growled darkly, a dark, murderous feeling overcoming him, permeating so much that it caused Clive to shudder and start yelling.   
“You little shit! I knew that truck looked familiar! I thought you were dead!” He shouted, catching the attention of the employee who cowered and ran off when Frank pulled out his knife.   
“You wish!” Frank yelled at the top of his lungs, pointing his knife at his next victim. “You’ll be the one dying.”  
The venom dripped from his voice as he started approaching the man, his surroundings fading from his mind as his desire to kill took over his reasoning. Susie ran up beside Julie at the front to see what was going on. Julie looked back at the far aisle that Frank and Clive were standing in. She bit her lip in anticipation, reaching down to feel the knife in her pocket in case Frank needed back up.   
Clive noticed the knife that Frank pulled out and shivered, taking a step back before bolting it for the door he just came in from. Frank raised his knife and charged after the intoxicated, sluggish man, eager to finally kill the man who had drove him over his breaking point, the man that started this decline of humanity into him becoming a killer.  
Clive knew he wouldn’t be able to outrun Frank, so he used all his strength to throw the metal tank at Frank, effectively hitting and slowing him down since he had no room to dodge in the small aisle. Susie and Julie gasped, running over to see if Frank was okay since he was groaning on the floor. He started yelling, cursing that they were letting him escape. The girls jumped back, startled by Frank’s burning anger that was misdirected at them. They looked at each other worriedly, before jumping to their feet and going after Clive.   
Joey and Marissa looked over at the gas station, confused at what the ruckus was all about. They saw an older man speed out the door and run to an old red car searching frantically for his keys. They looked over to the doors and saw Susie and Julie emerge from one of the aisles, starting to head towards the exit. The two looked between each other confused before hearing sirens in the distance.   
Joey ran off towards the road and saw a few cop cars approaching the gas station quickly. He cursed under his breath and ran back to the pump, taking it out and screwing on the cap.   
“It’s the fucking cops! Frank probably started some shit and forced someone to call the police.” He explained to Marissa, running to the front to start the truck.   
Marissa looked at him scared, unsure of what to do. “What?! Are you sure they’re coming here?”  
He nodded, finally getting the old truck to start after a few tries. “Yeah. Ormond isn’t that far away form here. The cops are pretty quick to respond to this shifty gas station too. We gotta get going now! Get inside!” He yelled and waved down Susie and Julie. “We gotta go NOW! Police!”   
The ladies stopped, almost at Clive’s car and looked over to Joey. Clive used this opportunity to start his car and speed off for safety, leaving the kids behind. Frank ran through the front doors and cursed loudly, watching Clive speed off.   
“He got away! Fucking hell!”   
“Frank we need to go!” Susie yelled, running towards the truck as Julie ran to him.   
“Someone called the cops. We gotta get out of here.”  
“NO! WE HAVE TO GO AFTER-“  
“FRANK!” Julie yelled and began forcing him towards the truck. “They already know that we stole his truck and now that we pulled a knife on Clive, they won’t let up. The police will pursue us and if they catch us then we’ll never kill that bastard. Let’s leave while we still can!”  
Julie’s reasoning seemed to calm Frank down enough to fully realize the situation he got them in. He noticed the sounds of the sirens and looked over at the truck. Susie had stopped halfway, watching Frank and Julie and waiting for direction. He looked past her and saw Joey waving them over worriedly. Last, he saw terrified blue eyes look over to him in desperation. This wasn’t just about him anymore. He had so many involved in this affair, he had to be smart about it if he truly wanted to put this part of his past behind him.   
“Fine. Let’s fucking go! Susie and Julie! Jump in the back. Joey, drive off once we all hop in! Let’s go!”  
Everyone nodded, the trio speeding to the safety of the back of the truck while Marissa and Joey stayed in the front, ready to leave when they jumped in. Marissa felt her heart racing, she shrunk down low to hide as the police cars approached, getting closer and closer until the group finally sped off, tires squealing.   
The rickety old truck flew down the road, going the opposite direction of Ormond to get on the highway and hopefully escape. The police seemed to realize their escape plan and sped up, trying to tail and follow the group. The trio in the back were shouting at Joey to go faster while Marissa tried to stay calm and give him directions, watching the old road weave and twist tightly. Every so often, she would peer in the rearview mirror at the flashing lights behind them.   
“Take the backroad Jo! It’s coming up here soon!” Frank yelled, trying to guide the panicked Joey.   
Marissa’s eyes winded at this, she shook her head and tried reasoning with Joey. “Don’t take that path! It’s gravel and we can’t drive as fast as the highway!”  
Joey focused on the road, listening to Frank and Marissa’s cries to pick different roads. He looked back at the red and blue lights in the mirror before suddenly slamming on the breaks and taking a sharp left u-turn into the beaten path Frank had wanted. The teens screamed, hanging on for dear life in the back while Joey did his best to make the sudden turn. Marissa grasped her seatbelt tightly and caught her body with her legs to stabilize herself as Joey sped around the pavement and onto the old gravel path.   
“SORRY! We gotta take this path. It’s the only way to lose them!” Joey called out to the group as he gripped the wheel tightly, trying to stabilize the truck on the rickety path through the woods.   
Susie cried out, trying to catch herself as a large bump sent her flying in the air. A hand reached out and grabbed her by the wrist. She gasped as Frank grit his teeth, catching and pulling her down into the bed of the truck safely. The truck turned and cut around corners sharply, sending the trio in the back swaying around. Frank gripped one side of the truck and used his other to hold Susie against him while Julie did the same on the other side. Susie held on to their arms, afraid to loosen her grip even slightly.   
Meanwhile in the front seat Joey had turned on the headlights in the dark forest, trying to see the road better. Marissa was trying her best to direct him along the path and help him plan his turns out better. The red and blue lights pursued them in the distance, trying to catch up without crashing.  
Joey took a particularly sharp turn, so much that the lights disappeared for a brief moment. Up ahead was a fork in the road, two different paths for them to take. This was his chance to escape the police. Joey slowed up a bit on the gas and did a smoother turn down the right path, hoping to evade the police while they were out of his sight. He peered into the rearview mirror, watching and waiting to see if the lights were following them down the path he took. His eyes were locked on to the mirror, sweat dripping down the side of his face as he waited in anticipation.   
“JOEY LOOK OUT!”   
Suddenly, Joey felt Marissa grab the wheel and steer them off the path 90 degrees to the left. The truck thudded against something roughly just before they went flying down the hill, hitting every branch, rock and other forest scenery as they plummeted. Joey’s eyes opened back up when he felt the group falling down the hill. He was about to yell at Marissa until he saw strange branches sticking out through the front windshield right next to his head and overtop of Marissa’s body that laid on the bench of the truck. He took control of the wheel again and did his best to maneuver down the hill until they were level again on the valley below speeding towards some trees.  
Joey struggled to see past the smoke that started filling the front. He stepped on the brakes and tried to stop the damaged truck, screeching to a halt too roughly that it sent the on its left side, sliding against the ground until it stopped due to a large rock catching the roof of the truck.   
The young man panted for a while, clutching the wheel tightly until he opened his eyes and realized he and Marissa were hanging on their sides, their seatbelts the only thing keeping them in place. The front was filled with white smoke that escaped through the shattered glass. Joey glanced over at Marissa who had her eyes closed and a hand over her mouth, coughing from the smoke. She held on to her seatbelt with her free hand as she still laid against the bench of the truck, practically leaning against Joey for support.   
Joey groaned, coming to and realizing they had to get out soon. The truck was totaled and there was no way they could get it working with all the damage. He reached over and unbuckled himself, then Marissa who grunted as she fell more on top of him.   
“We… gotta get…. out.” Joey muttered, shaking her upper arm.   
Marissa nodded and looked over at him weakly, blood dripping down from a cut on her forehead, cheek and chin. Joey felt a slimy liquid run down his face near his eye but ignored it. He stood, standing on top of the driver’s door as he helped Marissa steady herself as well. He reached down and searched his pockets for his knife, unable to find it.   
“Here…” Marissa whispered, handing Joey his old knife with one hand while the other covered her mouth.   
He nodded at her and jumped up, grabbing the passenger door handle and bashing open the window with the back of his old hunting knife. Marissa shielded herself as glass flew down towards her. Suddenly, she heard calling and looked up, seeing Joey reach a hand down towards her. She felt light-headed, unable to see straight as she reached up for Joey’s blurry hands. Joey was kneeling on the top of the tattered truck and reached down with his long arms, able to grab her hand and hoist her out of the smoky trap. As he pulled her up, he glanced over at the front of the truck, only one light was illuminated, and it flickered in the dark forest. Still, there was just enough light to see that the strange branches he saw before were, in fact, buck antlers that had nearly pierced his chest just moments ago. The realization that he almost died sent shivers down his spine. Marissa’s coughing brought him back to reality as he pulled her up beside him.   
“Is… is everyone okay?” She croaked out, looking around for the trio in the back.   
Joey’s eyes widened as he looked around for his friends that seemed to be gone. “FRANK! SUSIE! JULIE!”   
The young man hopped down from the truck and helped the disoriented girl after. The two began walking off in search for the others as they called for them. A few moments of searching led them to the trio laying on the ground in a pile. Joey and Marissa ran over to the group, asking if they were alright.   
“I’m… okay. Just beaten up a bit.” Julie groaned out, holding her head as she sat up.   
“Good thing the bush broke our fall…” Susie held her head and leaned on her knees for support.   
Frank simply grumbled and nodded at the group, helping himself then Julie up. Joey helped Susie to her feet, but she was more concerned with Marissa’s well-being.   
“I’m alright Susie.” Marissa coughed a bit as Susie hugged her tightly. “The truck not so much…”  
The group looked back at the smoking truck until Frank got their attention.   
“Forget it. We still got the cop son our tails. We will just loose them on foot.” He declared and waved for the young adults to follow him as he walked ahead. “I know where we’re at anyway. I’ve been through these woods a lot back in the day.”  
Nodding, the group followed their leader. Susie stuck beside Marissa while Joey and Julie followed Frank close behind. The teens trekked up bumpy hills, over large trees and past a small frozen river. The lac of sunlight from the dreary day and the dense foliage kept the atmosphere dark and eerie as the kids moved through the wooded area.   
After what seemed like hours, they saw a light shine through the path ahead, lighting their way to freedom. Frank held the branches apart for his friends to go through, leading to an opening. Marissa ducked underneath then looked around the open area with relief, happy to be out of the rough woods. Her relief was short-lived, however, until she realized she recognized the lonely ski resort from her dreams now a reality standing before her. Blue eyes widened in horror as flashbacks to her horrific dreams flashed through her mind. This wasn’t real. Her dreams weren’t real. Yet here was the exact murderous location before her.  
Frank walked under the branches and glanced over his shoulder. He smirked when he saw no sign of the cops. “Looks like we got away.”   
The dark-haired boy stepped beside the brunette and noticed her pale, fearful expression. He glanced over at the resort and frowned. “Mount Ormond resort… The place has been abandoned for years…” He explained, not getting a response from Marissa.   
Frank let out a sigh and rested an arm over her shoulder, trying to get her attention and comfort her at the same time. “I know the place looks scary, but we won’t be there for long. We just gotta find a way out of this place.”   
Marissa’s face turned to Frank’s, beginning to panic at his words. “No Frank! Please don’t go there! Let’s just avoid the place altogether! Please!” She begged, holding his free hand and squeezing it tightly.   
Frank was taken back by her sudden, outright fear of the place. He raised a brow and shook his head at her, holding her hand with both of his. “Sorry this place freaks you out, but it’s our best bet to get outta here quickly. I’m hoping someone left an old car that we can hotwire and get outta here.”  
“Please Frank! Let’s just keep walking. I have a bad feeling about this place. Please trust me! PLEASE!” She pleaded with the young man, shaking her head as she began to shake in despair and terror.   
“Why are you so scared? You’re not going in alone.”  
“This place was in my nightmares!” She cried out, cutting him off and silencing the group.   
The teens looked between each other, an expression mixed of concern and uncertainty. Frank stared down at Marissa, his dark eyes meeting her jaded blue orbs. They locked expressions for a moment before Frank shook his head.   
“I’m sorry… This is our best bet to escape though…”  
Marissa’s face dropped, her fear leaving as she looked up at him in disbelief. “But my-“  
“It’s just a nightmare! It’s not real! You’re not going in there alone. We’ll protect you if you’re scared.” He smiled down at her warmly.   
Marissa frowned, looking down at her feet, knowing that she couldn’t convince him, but wishing she could. “That’s not what I’m worried about…” She murmured under her breath.   
Frank held her hand in his, dragging her along by it as the group headed into the seemingly abandoned ski resort. Each step she took felt like a year was taken off her life. Marissa’s heart was racing as they approached the back of the resort. The sun seemed to play tricks as the cloudy day casted odd shadows inside and on the deteriorated building.   
The group found an old shattered window and hopped inside the creaking edifice. Frank helped Marissa through the opening, helping her land gently on her feet. Normally the feeling of Frank’s sturdy hands on her hips would be arousing, but all Marissa could feel was unease and dread. She took a few steps inside the place and felt time slow down. Flashbacks of her dreams walking inside the place seemed to appear before her eyes. Vision of people getting brutally murdered by the legion of killers she had been traveling with unfolded before her eyes. She felt her heart grow heavy, almost cry out in pain as she hallucinated.   
Susie looked over at Marissa, noticing her hold a hand to her chest and shudder as she stared ahead at the dark rooms. The pinkette rushed over and patted her back reassuringly. Frank listened to Susie try to comfort Marissa, saying she would be there for her. He frowned, starting to feel bad at the pain this place was causing his friend. Still, he knew this was their best shot to make a quick escape from the cops hot on their trail.   
Quietly and quickly, the group searched through the rooms, looking for an area that would hold cars or carts they could drive off in. As they approached the next room, they heard shouting. They all froze and hid in the dark room, looking through the doorway at two figures standing in the lobby of the resort.   
“You… you bastard! You took everything away from me!” One man shouted at the other person.   
The teens peered from behind the corner, trying to see what was going on. Frank was able to see the outline of two figures in the dark room, one seemed to have their hands up while the other was holding a shotgun at the other. His eyes widened in worry as he watched the two.   
“C-Calm down Mike… I don’t know what you’re talking about-“  
“The hell you don’t! You took my dreams away from me! Now you’ll pay for it!” The man pointed his shotgun up towards his head, his arms shaking in anger and possible fear.  
“Wait Mike! What do you mean?! I didn’t-“ The other man waved his hands back and forth worriedly, trying to calm the man down.   
“You always got everything handed to you in life on a golden platter! Always! The last spot in the best art school, the special mural project in town that I worked my ass off for, the gigs at the museum… EVERYTHING! You get close to your classmates just to use their work and get all the credit for it, including me! Goddammit I look like a fucking failure in comparison to you cuz you get all the fucking luck! It’s not fucking fair!” Mike’s face turned red in anger, burning with hatred. “N-No one cares about anything I do. It’s always about you. Even Nicole just fucking asks about you! She doesn’t care about me at all!”  
The other man was quiet, waiting for his assailant to stop talking. “I-I promise I didn’t mean it. I just get inspired from other people and can’t help how popular my work is. I promise Mike. Jesus I didn’t think you called this meeting to point a gun at me out of jealousy.”  
“WHAT’D YOU FUCKING SAY YOU BASTARD?!” Mike screamed at the other man, cocking his gun in place.   
The sound of the gun cocking sent shivers down the kids’ spines. Susie cried out before holding a hand to her mouth to try and quiet it. Unfortunately, Mike had noticed the noise and pointed his gun at their direction.   
“WHO’S FUCKING THERE?! COME OUT YOU BASTARD BEFORE I START FIRING! I HEARD YOU!” He demanded, staring at the doorway and noticing the shadows of the figures hiding behind it.   
Marissa looked at Frank who stayed behind the doorway, not moving. She shook her head and shook his arm a little. “Frank! Listen to him so we don’t get shot! Tell him it’s a misunderstanding and we were leaving.”  
Frank frowned down at her, not convinced it would work before hearing the yelling again. Her eyes looked at his determined, full of desperation. He acquiesced and held his hands up, the rest of the group following suit and coming out of the darkness so the two could see them. Mike yelled at them to come closer slowly, wanting to get a good look at them as they approached.  
“You hired teenagers to come fucking spy on us? What the hell is your problem Jeffrey?” Mike growled back at the long-haired man who still had his hands raised.   
Jeff shook his head, dismissing the comment. “I don’t even know who they are. Come on Mike. Let us all go, now there’s children involved. If you put the gun down, we will all forget about this mess.”   
Mike felt a surge of fear go through his body as he yelled at the teens to walk over and stand closer to Jeff in the dim light. “No… No I won’t let this go. I’ve gone in too deep.” He growled, feeling tears sting his eyes when he noticed the teens seemed to look at him worriedly. It was obvious they had no idea what was going on as they slowly walked over with their hands up.   
“We’re not here to interrupt you two.” Frank started speaking, glaring at Mike who moved his gun towards his direction. “We’re just here to find some help. Our truck crashed in the woods and we’re stranded. WE don’t even know that guy.” He motioned over to the man with long hair and a beard.   
“Listen to them Mike. Let the kids go. It’s obvious they were hurt. Look at them! They’re bleeding.” Jeff tried reasoning with Mike who pointed the gun back at him. “Don’t get them involved in this.”  
“Stop…fucking…talking for one second JEFF!” Mike yelled, starting to shake in fear that all these kids had seen him with a gun, threatening another man. “I… can’t… They’ve seen me. No going back now.”   
The gun moved back to Jeff and Mike took a step closer towards him. Jeff and the kids jumped in fear as his fingers shook at the trigger. “I got nothing left to lose. No job to go back to. No family to return to. I left my friends behind… This is all I have left…”   
He trailed off for a brief moment and lowered his head, his shaggy hair covering his face as he looked down. Marissa noticed that dark smoke seemed to emit from his body and pool at his feet. His body seemed to stop shaking and relax a bit. Mike suddenly looked up at Jeff, a wide-toothed, crooked smile upon his face as he looked at his rival; his previous nervous aura had disappeared and been replaced with this insane expression.   
“I’ll treasure this moment while I can!” He yelled and started laughing manically.   
Mike suddenly stopped laughing and stared at Jeff, his evil smirk still on his face. Marissa felt time slow down as she noticed the black smoke move up his body, over his arm and towards the finger that ghosted over the trigger. Every rational thought gone, her body bolted past her comrades in an instant.   
“Goodbye.” A deep, dark voice emitted from Mike as the trigger was pulled.   
Red.   
Splashing.   
Crash.   
The entire building seemed to freeze, go completely silent as the crowd watched the young woman fall hard to the ground, blood spurting from the gaping hole in her chest. Frank, Julie, Susie and Joey felt their bodies stop in horror, seeing their comrade fall on the cold, hard floor full of blood. Jeff cried out in surprise and took a few steps over towards the young woman, holding her in his arms and calling out to her in fear. Mike’s expressed immediately changed into fear and regret, realizing that he had missed his target and hurt an innocent bystander.   
A darkness jumped at him. Four figures with shining knives were on top of him, screaming and stabbing the man endlessly in hatred and pure bloodlust. Mike dropped his gun after a few stabs, falling to the floor in a new pool of red as the group continued their onslaught.  
Jeff watched in horror as the group of teens brutally murdered his former acquaintance. He shuddered when they stopped, standing over the body with bloody clothes and panting heavily. His words were lost in his throat as he stared at the teens like they were bloodthirsty animals.   
A coughing tore Jeff from his stares at the group and down at the dying woman in his arms. Her eyes were barely open, streams of blood dripped down her lips as her face grew paler and paler by the second.   
“Oh… god… Don’t die… Hang on… I’ll get you some help-“   
Jeff was cut off by a single figure shoving him roughly away, causing him to fall back on the ground.   
“STAY AWAY FROM HER!” Frank yelled at the top of his lungs, an aggressive, protective aura about the group that was suddenly beside the dying girl.   
Jeff was silent yet shook his head and moved away from the group, watching as they knelt down beside her. He watched as the dark-haired man knelt down and held the woman in his arms. The other three gathered around her and blocking his view of the woman who saved his life.   
“Why would you do that?” Frank croaked out, tears coming to his eyes as he held the bleeding girl in his arms. “Why risk your life for someone you don’t even know? Your life is more important than his dammit!”   
Suzy was sobbing beside Marissa, holding one of her hands tightly between hers. Julie and Joey watched silently in sadness as they noticed her liveliness start to fade from her body.   
Marissa tried opening her eyes better to look up at her friends, her body felt weak, hardly able to move much more. “I couldn’t stop myself… My body took over…” She whispered, taking a break to regain some last, fleeting energy as she turned to look at Frank. “I guess you were right Frank… good guys… die first…”  
“NO! DON’T FUCKING SAY THAT! You’re not dying here… I won’t let you… I…” Frank’s anger began to dissipate as the tears and despair took over his emotions. “I… love you Marissa… I’m not letting you die… I said I would be here for you no matter what… That I would protect you…”  
Marissa felt a small smile form on her face as she heard this. She felt the last bit of energy fade from her body as her minimal grip in Susie’s hand faded, starting to fall. “I… love you too… I’m sorry for being so weak…” She turned to look at the others before staring up at the ceiling above her. “You guys… were the best thing that happened to me…”  
Susie had to catch Marissa’s hand as it started to fall to the floor, unable to keep it raised any longer. Susie cried out, holding her friend’s hand to her face as she bawled against it. Joey laid an arm around Julie who sobbed into her hands while Frank shook his head, still in denial.   
“You can’t go… you… you still haven’t repaid your debt… You can’t leave… Marissa… please….” Frank’s murmurs became croaks as he held her body tightly against his. “Don’t leave me…”  
Frank’s attention was distracted by a body starting to stand up. He immediately glared at the man before him, bloodlust taking over his sadness. “YOU.”  
Jeff flinched, stopped trying to help himself up and looked over at Frank and the others. Instantly he felt an aura of malice overcome him. A feeling of pure evil and murder was overtaking the group of teens who glared at the man.   
“SHE’S FUCKING DEAD BECAUSE OF YOU!” Frank yelled, about to lunge at Jeff.   
Jeff held up his arms, falling back on his bottom as he sensed his immediate death. A few seconds had passed. Nothing. He opened his eyes and saw black tentacles forming from underneath him and the group of teens, protecting him from 40 knife wounds. The tentacles were pulling the five of them into two separate black vortexes. He shivered, unsure what he should be more fearful of: this black entity or his certain murder.   
“YOU SHOULD BE DEAD! NOT HER!” Frank was yelling, thrashing against the tentacles that pulled his body back.   
He reached towards Jeff, desperately wanting to kill him until something white on the ground caught his attention. His gaze focused on a small white cylinder that laid beside his dying friend. With enough strength, he pushed against the tentacles until he could grab the small, crumpled object. He stood there silently, staring down at the white item silently before looking at Marissa one last time before he was absorbed by the entity.   
Marissa’s last few moments allowed her to witness the entity she tried so desperately to learn about, escape from, fight against, absorb her friends into the black mist surrounding them. Her eyes began to fall as she laid on the floor, unable to move, unable to speak. A few tears slid down her face as she watched the tentacles pull the five people into the darkness, four white masks seemed to appear on their faces just before the group disappeared. A single sentence crossed her mind as she witnessed her friend’s demise right before her eyes.   
“The only way for the Entity to manifest itself in the real world is through an act of violence so extreme, that it results in fatalities.”  
Two bodies bled out on the floor, the red liquid spreading quietly as the abandoned ski resort became silent once again.   
……………  
Epilogue-  
The hooded youth walked through the dark portal, striding along quickly as they wiped their bloodied knife against their jacket. A group of three were waiting for the person in anticipation. As they approached, the trio stood up and waited.   
“You mori’ed him again didn’t you?” Said a young woman with green eyes and shoulder-length brown hair.   
They nodded.   
“L-let me do it next time. He deserves it.” A blue-haired young woman smiled wickedly at them, flashing their braces.   
They shrugged.   
“Come on. Let us enjoy cutting him open sometimes too.” The dark-skinned man held out their old, tattered hunting knife and began flipping it, doing tricks. “It’s only fair, Frank.”  
A sigh. The figure removed their hood and glanced over at his friends with dark, jaded eyes. The young man reached down and searched for something in his pocket. After finding it, he moved his hand close to his face to look at it: a partially used cigarette.   
“As long as that bastard suffers… I don’t care what you all do to him.”   
Frank clutched the used cigarette in his fist tightly. Joey held up his knife and stared at the used blade. Julie ran a hand through her shoulder-length hair. Susie twirled a finger around her long, blue hair. The Legion were silent, remembering, reminiscing of the journey they took to enter the fog.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that was the last chapter of Journey to Enter the Fog. Wow what a journey it was indeed. I really didn't think it would end up this long, or even end like that. As usual, I had hoped to spend more time perfecting the last chapter, so if there are errors it was because my writer's block and busy life wanted me to just post it already LOL  
> Let me know what you guys all thought of the story. I love reading your comments and appreciate all the love you've showed me throughout the story :) Thanks for everything!


	12. Request!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hello all! This chapter was a request from DespairMio. They wanted an alternate ending where Marissa survives and becomes one with the Legion. I hope you enjoy this alternate chapter Mio. :) So sorry it took so long! I've had some family emergencies and just been dealing with life in general. I did not expect this to be so long so I hope the length suffices for the time waited, haha.  
> At this point, I do not think I will be writing a sequel. I haven't really thought about it much or settled on how I want it to go. Maybe sometime in the future I will feel inspired to write something. ^_^  
> Enjoy and thank you all for the support and new kudos's! You guys are awesome~

What was happening right now?  
The shouts of men echoed through the abandoned, cold resort; tensions were palpable as the loaded barrel pointed between a new person as they spoke.  
Heated words started to become blurred together, becoming indistinguishable as the brunette felt an eerie sensation wash throughout her body. Eyes became glossy with tears, skin crawled with goosebumps, face flushed with a deathly pale glow. It was almost as if this cold sensation had replaced and forced out her soul, leaving her body an empty husk.   
“We’re not here to interrupt you two.” Frank started speaking, glaring at Mike who moved his gun towards his direction. “We’re just here to find some help. Our truck crashed in the woods and we’re stranded. WE don’t even know that guy.” He motioned over to the man with long hair and a beard.   
“Listen to them Mike. Let the kids go. It’s obvious they were hurt. Look at them! They’re bleeding.” Jeff tried reasoning with Mike who pointed the gun back at him. “Don’t get them involved in this.”  
“Stop…fucking…talking for one second JEFF!” Mike yelled, starting to shake in fear that all these kids had seen him with a gun, threatening another man. “I… can’t… They’ve seen me. No going back now.”   
Darkness enveloped the floating brunette. Her soul swimming in this inescapable, silent environment that was eerily familiar. Desperate, she looked around for her friends, for any help as despair overtook her emotions. She knew this place-she had been here before and seen awful things she wished she could forget. There was no denying that the Entity had pulled her soul here once again, but why now? Why in this dire situation?   
“What do you want from me?” Marissa spoke into the darkness.  
Though she could see nothing, could not hear or feel anything, she could sense a presence in the dark watching her with deadly intent. Marissa waited, her body still afloat in the odd phenomena of falling and flying simultaneously.   
Suddenly, something began moving before her eyes. Darkness slithered, warped and squirmed as it began to form a shape. It was impossible to see what it exactly looked like; she could sense an evil aura growing closer to her being, the Entity no doubt.   
After a few moments, the movement stopped. Silently, the soul waited, hoping to see any kind of indication of what was happening then-  
“Giving you a chance to alter fate.” A dark voice murmured in the darkness.   
Marissa’s eyebrows raised upon hearing this sentence. Not only was she stunned at the response she got, but the voice was uncomfortably familiar. The brunette watched as a silhouette moved in the darkness, unable to see anything more than a vague human-like shape.  
“What is that supposed to mean?”  
“Exactly what I said. I’m giving you a chance to change fate. You’re worried about what will happen to them, no?”  
Blue eyes widened in shock upon hearing this. Her mind flashed to the group of teens she had befriended for the past couple weeks. She had grown close to each of them, become so attached to the group of rejects; her heart seemed to swell in her ethereal chest.  
“You’re going to turn them into monsters... Make them hunt people to feed you! I don’t believe you when you say you’re going to let me stop that from happening.”  
“When did I say that would happen?”   
Marissa could hear the smile in its voice grow with each word. It was amused by her assumption. She shook her head and looked away from the source of the voice.   
“Then I don’t know what you’re talking about. We’re wasting each other’s time with this non-“  
“What if you didn’t have to leave them?” It cooed to her, shutting Marissa up before she could finish her sentence. “Those kids we are both interested in will become killers in a few minutes. That will not change, but your role in the story could change based on what answer you give me.”  
Marissa stared in its direction, waiting for it to continue. The darkness chuckled a bit, realizing it caught her interest.   
“You know what’s going to happen to you? Your fate is to die heroically, protecting that to-be survivor in my upcoming games. Our little friends will be pulled into my games as you die alone, bleeding out on the grimy floor of that abandoned ski resort.”   
Blue eyes widened in horror, horror taking over Marissa’s soul as she listened to the Entity speak to her.   
“You see… there’s such an annoying part to this whole situation. You were only meant to be a puppet-the catalyst to guide our kiddos into growing to become killers ready to participate in the games.”  
“THEY WON’T LET YOU CONTROL THEM!” Marissa screamed in frustration and rage.   
The being speaking to her became silent for a few moments until it growled under its breath. “Yes… that is the issue here… They DO become willing killers, but the time it takes to convince and coax and force them into killing is too long and arduous for my liking. Really, you just HAD to make them become so smitten with you-you just HAD to brainwash them into being spineless weaklings.”  
“THEY AREN’T SPINELESS WEAKLINGS. No one wants to kill in your twisted game, let alone those kids!”  
“They cannot hide their bloodlust. Their fate was decided on the day they killed that clerk and gave up on humanity. You were only the guide that was meant to bring them back home-to me.”   
Marissa frowned; Frank’s words reverberated in her mind after hearing those harsh words.  
“Why be a good person and a pushover when the rest of the world is full of evil and darkness? Good people are always the first to die. Only assholes live long enough to make a difference.”  
“…You don’t seriously believe that… do you?”   
“…Of course I do. Nothing’s proved me wrong yet.”  
The Entity noticed she had grown silent and began to chuckle darkly. “This is where my offer comes in. You see… when you die, my hunters mourn over your death far longer than I would like. They all stick to your ideals and deny me my kills. It takes far too long to convince them to begin killing, and I would really rather not use brutal force and harm my hunters… This is where you come in. Instead of dying like a pathetic hero to prove some useless point… live. Survive and enter the fog with us, become a part of the Legion.”  
Baffled, too taken back from its offer, Marissa just stared at the darkness in shock. A few moments passed before she shook her head at the Entity. “I’ll never give you what you want. I refuse.”  
“Why? What holds you back?”  
“I’m not a killer! I would never kill anyone!” She shook her head and grit her teeth in anger.   
“Maybe in your life back home. Did you ever expect you would have hit someone with a coat rack so hard it drew blood? That you would feel so much bloodlust that it would cloud your reasoning, making you want to stab a man? You’re not the innocent human you once were. You know you have it in you. You know how much these kids have changed you-how badly you want to stay with them, how you wished you wouldn’t have to leave them?”   
Marissa bit her lip, turning away from the voice that tempted her, tried to sway her stubborn morals. “No… you… you don’t know anything about me or what I’m feeling. You have it all wrong.”  
“Oh? Do I?” It questioned, the voice growing closer to her ethereal body with each word. “I think I know better than anyone else what you’re feeling.”   
Marissa slowly looked back in the direction of the voice and saw a form standing a few feet apart from her. Her eyes widened in horror, staring at the smirking form that watched her eagerly. The new human that stood before her radiated a small glow around their form as they stood silently in the darkness.   
“Wh-wha-“  
“Surprised? See… you have no reason to doubt me when I know everything you’ve gone through.” The woman smiled at Marissa warmly and held a hand to her heart. “The Legion wouldn’t be here without you…” They chuckled and tucked their brown hair behind their ear. “Without us…”  
Marissa felt herself freeze, unable to move as she looked back at the person before her-a replica staring back at her like she was looking in a mirror.   
“You… you’re not real!”  
“WE were born February 15th. WE have a younger brother who will be starting college within a year. WE had hopes to move to a city in Iowa and start OUR career at a university. WE had dreams to become an artist and WE gave up on that hopeless fantasy a long time ago.” The replica looked at Marissa expectantly. “Is that not enough proof for you? What about those dark thoughts WE had since middle school? How many times have WE tried to hurt ourselves? More times than I can remember.”  
“St-stop!” Marissa felt her voice become hoarse as tears began forming in her eyes at the memories. “Why are you doing this?”   
The other let out a sigh and shook their head in annoyance. “It’s what I’ve been telling you this whole time. You have the opportunity to be with them. The Entity will spare you if you let it. You’ll get to be with them… with Susie and Julie and Joey and Frank.”  
The replica slowly walked over and reached out, holding her twin’s hands in her own. “You can trust me because I made the choice. There’s no reason to stick to your morals if it just means getting killed, not when there’s an option to live and be free with people you love.”   
These eerie yet comforting words started to sink in. Tears ran down Marissa’s cheeks as she thought about losing her new friends-thought about death and leaving so much behind. Memories of her and the Legion flashed in her mind, reminding her of the good and the bad. Her heart fluttered when she recalled the good memories of them eating together, practicing knife throwing, becoming intimate… She couldn’t hide the small smile that formed as she remembered. Then bad memories ran through her thoughts. Her heart became heavy in her chest as she thought about the times they were hurt, the times where their lives were at stake. Even during the most scary and dangerous moments, she felt alive, she felt free with her new comrades, her previous reservations gone.   
“I…” Marissa whispered, looking down at her hands being held. Gently, she squeezed her twin’s hands back and looked up with teary eyes. “It’s not fair… I-I want to stay with them… but I-I can’t kill anyone… why does it have to be this way?”  
The twin let out a sigh and smiled back warmly. “It doesn’t matter if it’s fair… You know what you want. You know what needs to happen. Don’t deny yourself your happiness over foolish human morals. Where you’re going, you won’t need them.”   
Marissa looked up at her dark twin with a sad, guilty disposition. She was silent for a while, lost in her thoughts. Both of them knew she was tempted with this offer, wanted nothing more than to take it. Really. What was holding her back? She would be with her friends. Her human responsibilities and morals no longer needed. What was wrong with her wanting to be happy? To be a little selfish?   
“I… I want to be happy… I don’t want to die… I want to stay with them.” Marissa croaked out, letting a few more tears run down her face. “Please…”  
Her twin smiled widely at this and let go of her hands. Swiftly, she reached out and held her twin’s face in her hands, bringing her gaze up to meet hers. “You’ve made a wise decision.”  
Marissa pouted, tears slid down her face and stopped against her dark twin’s fingers. “What… do I need to do?”  
Her twin smirked darkly and leaned forward, whispering beside her ear. “You have to kill the human with the gun. That will prove yourself to the Entity.”  
Slowly, the dark Marissa pulled back so she could look down at her disheveled twin. They noticed that she looked uneasy, not ready to fully accept her choice. “Well….. think of it this way, love. That man is threatening to hurt our friends. WE very well can’t have that happen now can we?”  
Marissa sniffled and shook her head, wiping her cheeks. “No… I want to protect them.”  
“Good… I think I’ve made myself clear. There’s no going back after you make this decision. Find your resolve so you can find your true self!”  
A warmth started to return to her being. She felt a comforting feeling flash through her heart as the darkness sent her flying back to her body, returning her to her friends. She looked down at the group of people being held at gunpoint. A twinge of hatred prodded at her heart. How dare that man try to harm her friends! She had to do something-save them all like she had promised Frank long ago. 

“I got nothing left to lose. No job to go back to. No family to return to. I left my friends behind… This is all I have left…”   
Marissa let out a long breath as she felt herself return in her body. Her eyes moved between each person. Julie, Joey, Susie, Frank… Each one of them scared of this psychotic man pointing a gun at them all.   
‘I won’t let him hurt any of you…’ She thought, glancing over to the knife Joey had loaned her. The shine of the silver seemed to sing at her, tempting her.   
Mike trailed off for a brief moment and lowered his head, his shaggy hair covering his face as he looked down. Marissa noticed that dark smoke seemed to emit from his body and pool at his feet. His body seemed to stop shaking and relax a bit. Mike suddenly looked up at Jeff, a wide-toothed, crooked smile upon his face as he looked at his rival; his previous nervous aura had disappeared and been replaced with this insane expression. This was her moment! Now or never- either he or her was going to kill tonight.   
“I’ll treasure this moment while I can!” He yelled and started laughing manically.   
Mike suddenly stopped laughing and stared at Jeff, his evil smirk still on his face. Marissa felt time slow down as she noticed the black smoke move up his body, over his arm and towards the finger that ghosted over the trigger. Every rational thought gone, her body bolted past her comrades in an instant.   
“Goodbye.” A deep, dark voice emitted from Mike as the trigger was pulled.   
Red.   
Splashing.   
Crash.   
The group watched in shock as blood poured out from the body twitching on the floor. A figure leaned over the soon-to-be corpse, brown hair covering their face as they pushed the knife deeper into a chest.   
“I won’t let you hurt them.” Marissa whispered darkly, glaring down at the scared, dying man below her.   
Her blue eyes stared his dark ones down, neither breaking away from each other until Mike drew his last breath, his head falling to the side. The teenagers and man watched in shock as Marissa took that man’s life.   
“M-Marissa?” Frank murmured out, surprised at her sudden eagerness to kill.   
Slowly, she turned back and smiled weakly at the group of teens. “I-I couldn’t just sit back and let him hurt you all…”   
Susie was the first to speak after hearing Marissa. She stared at her friend stunned before smiling back. “Whoa… you’re like super badass now Marissa! Are you going to stay with us?”   
Marissa slowly nodded back, standing up and wiping some blood off her cheek with her arm. “I could never leave you all… Friends. Through thick and thin.” She held out a hand towards the group while the other stayed at her side holding a bloodied knife.   
Susie gasped and jumped for joy, running over and hugging Marissa tightly. After a few moments of watching Susie and Marissa hug, Joey let a smile creep on to this face.   
“Well I wasn’t expecting that… but I guess that makes you officially one of us huh?” Joey chuckled and walked over to the two.   
Julie nodded and followed him over, giving Marissa a small smile. “You were one of us anyway…”  
Marissa smiled back at the two before looking over to Frank who stared at her silently. She felt nervous, worried that he wasn’t speaking. She averted her eyes, worried thoughts raced through her head until she felt something grab her chin. Her eyes opened in time to see Frank press his lips against hers roughly.   
Everyone’s eyes widened at this as Frank and Marissa kissed. Susie let go of Marissa and let out a sigh, jealous yet happy Frank had accepted her actions. Joey smiled and nodded, thinking it was about damn time that they had finally kissed. Julie’s expression was a mixture of jealousy, hatred and shock. She felt her heart sink. Then, her eyes darted down to the dagger still in Marissa’s hands; a memory of Marissa saving her and the two of them confiding in one another flashed through her thoughts. She let out a sigh and shook her head. Her and Frank had been over for a while now. Really, she did notice how much Marissa had positively affected Frank, how much happier and lively he seemed. She knew that this would happen eventually, that she would move on and accept that Frank was no longer a lover, but a dear friend. Finally, she smiled at the two, letting go of the angry feelings her heavy heart held.   
Frank slowly pulled his lips back from hers, moving back enough to look Marissa in the eyes. He let out a chuckle, catching his breath from the deep kiss. “Honestly Marissa. Red looks so fucking hot on you.”   
Frank and Marissa glanced down at the blood that stained her clothes. Red began to spread on her face from embarrassment. Frank chuckled at her cute expression, his low, deep voice sent shivers down Marissa’s spine as he continued to hold her close to his body.   
“Looks like you’re stuck with us now.” He winked at her, eliciting a smile from the brunette.   
“Correction. You’re stuck with me.” She smirked back at Frank, sticking her tongue out at him playfully.  
“Careful.” Frank warned, chuckling at her. “If you use tongue, then I get to too.”   
“Hey! Don’t steal all of her kisses for yourself you jerk!” Susie cried out, her jealously taking over, as she pulled Marissa against her in a tight hug.  
“You’re both being ridiculous…” Joey muttered as Julie watched them yell at each other, chuckling.   
As the group bantered back and forth, a dark mist soon enveloped the crowd including Jeff. Everyone looked down in surprise as they began to sink into the darkness below them. Marissa felt her heart break as she looked around at her friends sinking into the darkness she tried so hard to save them from. Still… a part of her was happy that she got to go with them. This was what she decided-what she wanted.   
A small smile formed on her face as she let herself succumb to the darkness below her and within her heart. She was a new person now, a new her that she was beginning to embrace. She reflected back to the recent times with her newfound friends-her fear, her anger, her worry, her happiness that she wouldn’t have felt if it not been for meeting them.   
‘I have no regrets.’  
These last thoughts echoed through her mind as she and the Legion left behind their old lives and entered the fog into their new ones.

**Author's Note:**

> I wanted to start off by saying this is my first work, and helpful criticism is always appreciated. This is also my first posting on Archive, so if I make an error or should add tags let me know! I don't usually write, but had this idea swimming in the back of my head that I wanted to write down. I guess I got bit by the fanfiction bug. 
> 
> I read a couple of great works about Frank and noticed there aren't too many stories involving Legion in a relationship, so here's my take on the group.   
> Fair warning, I do my best to edit and review each chapter, but sometimes I overlook mistakes and poor grammar choices. I will also try to update frequently.
> 
> I think that was everything I wanted to say... Thanks for reading!


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